


Doors To The Undead (Can You Close The Door Properly?)

by Miss_Paint



Series: We've Got Spirits, How About You? [1]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Comedy, Coming of Age, Dark Meditation, Friendship, I hope, Implications of Creaturism, Inability to Close Doors Properly, Loosely based on Monster High, M/M, Monsters, One-Sided Enemies, Roommates, Roommates to Friends to ???, Slow Burn, Vampires, Zombies, this started as a joke
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:21:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27211864
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miss_Paint/pseuds/Miss_Paint
Summary: Na Jaemin had to face the beginning his specialized vampire curriculum, an unexpected vampire classification, and the pressure of living up to his father's grand legacy in the vampire world.Oh, and acutenew roommate who never closes the door properly.
Relationships: Huang Renjun/???, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung (side), Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Lee Jeno (side), Na Jaemin/Osaki Shotaro
Series: We've Got Spirits, How About You? [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1986631
Comments: 36
Kudos: 137
Collections: NCT Spookfest 2020





	Doors To The Undead (Can You Close The Door Properly?)

**Author's Note:**

> I know that we may never know if Shotaro's the door guy in Jaemin's vlive, but the speculations were how this fic was formed. This really started as a joke, but I hope that jaemtaro nation (population = ¾) enjoys. I ended up sacrificing sleep for this, so please excuse any errors. Obligatory this is just fiction. Enjoy!
> 
> Kind reminder to practice social distancing, just like[ Jaemin and Shotaro](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/752916884533411902/771349985941389312/unknown.png)!

“I still can’t believe we have to be separated this year.”

Jaemin scowled at the sigh his best friend Renjun gave as a response and stuck his tongue out as an equally mature reply. “I’m serious,” Jaemin continued. “We’ve been roommates since first year. Surely we could’ve stayed roommates for the rest of the journey.”

Renjun snorted, not bothering to look up from intricately folding his outfits. “You heard Headmaster Taeyong,” Renjun prepped his voice to give a bad imitation of the headmaster’s voice. “ _It’s time for you to expand your horizons! Meet new people! The world of monsters is diverse, and you can’t just stick with what you know._ ”

Jaemin laughed at the poor imitation Renjun gave and let Renjun speak again. “Besides, you know roommates get changed every two years here.”

Jaemin was well aware of that fact. Students of Neo Creature Technology Academy experienced roommate changes every two years, totaling up to at least three changes in the entire student’s journey. As a neophyte creature in the fresh age of 18 (or, more accurately, what was ‘ _deemed_ ’ the age of 18), Jaemin had no issue with new roommates. 

However, he didn’t expect to be best friends with his roommate. 

Jaemin fondly remembers the first time he and Renjun met. As a vampire, Jaemin appreciated the dark, the gloomy, the mysterious. All he wanted since he was a child was to be a respected, well-known vampire in the community, much like his father Doyoung. Beyond that, Jaemin also wanted to be a notorious figure in the monster world – after all, his father Doyoung and his werewolf dad Jaehyun were prominent figures. 

His twin brother, Jeno, a werewolf, didn’t seem to share the same ambitions as Jaemin. Jeno was perfectly content with the present, focused on being the best version of himself while being happy. 

But Jaemin was determined. He grew up in excellency, so it only made sense for him to be excellent as well. 

Upon entrance in the esteemed institution of Neo Creature Technology Academy (or NCT Academy, for the lazy), Jaemin was persistent in improving himself to be the best of the best. And while he was excited for the other aspects of academy life such as friends, parties, whatnot, Jaemin was mainly focused on one thing: success.

With his ambitious nature, Jaemin made sure not to be affected by anything. As both of his parents were already professors of the academy, Jaemin arrived in the academy well before his first day, ensuring that his room was to his liking. He expected a roommate, the son of two professors as well. As the two professors were known water monsters, Jaemin expected for his roommate to be water monster as well, because, well, what else would he be?

Jaemin prepared the room with his essentials. He replaced the standard student bed with a coffin because what kind of respectable vampire slept in a normal bed? His books of vampire lore, ready to be read and studied. His pipe organ, because his father Doyoung wanted Jaemin to be a ‘cultured’ vampire, or whatever the hell that means. Blackout curtains, definitely a must for a creature who despised light. And lastly, a stock of plasma packs, since Jaemin was well aware of the heavy shortage of humans in the academy. 

He was ready. Jaemin was excited, bright, and bushy-tailed, ready to take on the adventures as a student of NCT Academy. He has heard so many stories from his fathers and extended relatives, who always praised the academy and credited the institution for their life-long successes. 

Nothing was going to ruin his first day. 

Absolutely nothing. 

Until he met his first roommate, Renjun. Who, in his defense, Jaemin expected to be a water monster. Water monsters were adaptable, and even enjoyed the dark at times. 

Renjun was nice, smart, witty. Jaemin knew that they would get along from their first exchange of interactions. However, Jaemin could not ignore the obvious elephant in the room, that is –

Renjun was _not_ a water monster. If anything, he was the complete opposite. 

A luminous, glowing, effervescent _fire_ monster. As in, the creatures who thrived with light. Who created light. Jaemin was… well he was screwed.

“Do you remember the first time we met?” Renjun popped in, disrupting Jaemin’s thought process. Jaemin chuckled. How likely was it for his best friend to be thinking the same thing as Jaemin did?

“How could I not?” Jaemin replied. “I was so ready to meet a water monster, and lo and behold, the exact freaking _opposite_.” 

Through the years, Jaemin learned that Renjun was adopted by his water monster parents. It was a subject that left Renjun vulnerable for years, taking a while for Renjun to open to up to Jaemin of his background. 

Regardless of Renjun’s histories, the two went along splendidly. Both of them learned very quickly how to adjust to one another – Jaemin with Renjun’s necessity for light allowed for Jaemin to adapt to light quicker than an average vampire, and Renjun with Jaemin’s necessity for darkness allowed for Renjun to adapt to the dark faster than typical fire monsters. 

They were best friends, and now Jaemin was sad again with the thought of him separating with Renjun. “Do you know who Jeno is rooming with?” Jaemin said bitterly. “Dong-freaking-hyuck.”

Renjun laughed. “That should be illegal.”

“I know!” Jaemin exclaimed. “And it’s so ridiculous because Headmaster Taeyong’s walking around saying we need to embrace monster diversity and all that, but when I tried to complain, he said Papa Jaehyun insisted on all were-creatures to stick together.”

A part of Jaemin understood why. The growth of were-creatures was unpredictable, erratic, and it made sense for were-creatures to stick together for not only their but everyone’s safety. 

Still, that did not mean that Jeno should be rooming with his freaking _boyfriend_. 

“Like, he can room with his boyfriend, but I can’t room with my best friend?” Jaemin complained. “It’s just not fair.” 

Renjun shrugged, and finally closed his suitcase, ready to be taken out. He took the opportunity to sit next to Jaemin on top of his closed coffin. Jaemin remembered how long it took for Renjun to be comfortable with the presence of the coffin in the room and became even more bitter that they were to be separated. 

“Truth?” Renjun said, and Jaemin nodded. “I think you’re kind of overreacting.”

Jaemin made a noise of offense. “I beg your pardon?”

“You heard me,” Renjun bit back. “Like I said, you know this was coming. And it’s not like we’ll never see each other. For goodness sakes, we are in the same year level. And we’re best friends! Nothing can tear us apart.”

Jaemin knew this. Of course, nothing would separate the two together. 

Still that didn’t mean that Jaemin liked the change. He likes the traditional, the things he is used to. It takes him a while to adjust to changes. 

“Do you know who your roommate is?” Jaemin asked.

Renjun gave a clueless shrug. “All I know is that he’s a neophyte,” Renjun said. “You know, there is a rumor that he is the headmaster’s son.”

That surprised Jaemin a bit. “Headmaster Taeyong has a son?”

Renjun shrugged again. “Right? I heard it from Chenle.”

With that information, Jaemin could not help but scoff. Chenle was a witch, a witch with a crystal ball for a head, which pretty much surmised Chenle’s clairvoyancy abilities. Jaemin respected Chenle, liked him, even, but everyone knew that Chenle was never the most reliable source in the institution, especially with such low rates of prediction success. 

“Anyway, he doesn’t come in until tomorrow,” Renjun continued, and suddenly a small smirk formed on his face. “I’m hoping he’s not a _diva_ at least.”

Jaemin smacked Renjun’s shoulder. “I’m _not_ a diva!” Jaemin whined. “Us vampires have very specific needs to tend to.”

“Whatever,” Renjun dismissed Jaemin with a flick of his wrist. “You know I haven’t been getting in touch with my light source because I’ve been rooming with you. _Not_ that I’m saying it’s your fault, okay, I’m just saying that we should take this as a blessing for us to improve ourselves.”

Jaemin had to reluctantly agree. Ever since rooming with Renjun, Jaemin couldn’t practice the arts of dark meditation as often as he needed to. Among all vampires, dark meditation was an essential to regenerate vampire energy once in a while. The practice called for a dark setting, which seemed to be a basic requirement, really, but when you room with a fire monster, it’s… it’s pretty much impossible. Jaemin tried to sneak in a few meditation periods whenever his schedules didn’t match with Renjun, but since the two of them aimed to do everything together, that was never often.

At least now, Jaemin had a greater opportunity to practice dark meditation. This reminded Jaemin. “My roommate is a zombie,” Jaemin told Renjun. “Some guy named Osaki Shotaro.” 

That made Renjun turn his head to face Jaemin, expression filled with bewilderment. “You’re rooming with Shotaro?” Jaemin nodded, unsure where Renjun was heading with his question. “Oh man, I love Shotaro. He’s such a sweetheart.”

“How come I don’t know him?” Jaemin knew everyone Renjun knew. Or so he thought. 

Renjun gave him an unamused face. “Because you’re creaturist.” 

Jaemin was affronted by Renjun’s directness. “I am not!”

“Yes, you are.”

“I’m friends with a lot of creatures!”

“You think zombies are dumb.”

Okay, Renjun got Jaemin there. It was no secret that Jaemin… didn’t particularly find the need to associate with the zombies of the academy. 

Zombie were… well, Jaemin wouldn’t say that they were _dumb_ (thank you very much, Renjun), but rather, they were not just not on the same intellectual level of a vampire. That was a fact that Jaemin had no control over. 

“Zombies are not dumb,” Renjun continued. “That’s such a big, wrong stereotype, dumb zombies. They’re actually one of the sweetest creatures you could know! Well, if you don’t include the uncivilized ones.”

And that was the issue. A majority of zombies in the monster world were untamed, uncivilized, uninterested in integrating with the civilization of the creature community. They were left alone, but at the price of a loss of respect in the community.

“I never said they were dumb.” Jaemin defended himself, and ignored the unconvinced look Renjun gave him. “It’s just that, well, why would I need to befriend a zombie? What kind of vampire associates with zombies?”

“ _Creaturist…_ ” Sang Renjun in a mocking tone. Before Jaemin could react, Renjun stood up and walked to pick up his belongings. 

Jaemin stood up. “You’re leaving?” 

Renjun hummed an affirmation. “The sun is almost setting, and forgive me if I want a well-lit room for myself for once.”

Jaemin huffed, giving Renjun a pout. He knew Renjun’s weakness his pout, and before he could smile in victory, Renjun let go of his belongings and ushered for Jaemin to give him a hug. 

Jaemin treasured the hugs he gets with Renjun. As a vampire, Jaemin was eternally cold, with no way to ever warm himself. But through the hugs from the fire monster, Jaemin was able to savor the warmth his best friend could provide him. He liked it, for the warmth comforted him.

“Well, I’m leaving,” Renjun said as he ended the hug. “I’m all over in Dream Hall, and we both know that’s a travel.”

Jaemin groaned. Renjun and Jaemin’s dorm was in U Quarters, which was in the other side of NCT Academy, away from Dream Hall. “They just _had_ to put you there.”

“Behave, okay?” Renjun said, in the most motherly tone he could muster, and Jaemin gave a dry laugh.

“Just because you became best friends with Father Doyoung does not mean you get to parent me as well.”

“I’m leaving!” Renjun exclaimed as he walked towards the door. Before he could exit the room, leaving Jaemin the company of him himself, Renjun paused, and turned to face Jaemin. “Be nice to Shotaro, okay?”

“I’m not going to _bully_ him.” Jaemin grumbled, petulant. 

“Whatever,” Renjun said dismissively. “I’ll text you, okay?”

Third year in NCT Academy marked a change for students. In the first two years, students were subjected to general education subjects, ensuring that everyone was well-integrated and well-educated in the monster-verse. 

Diversity and acceptance were the key values in the establishment of the academy. The monster society took a while for different creatures to accept one another, with their histories scattered with several battles and wars in fight of superiority, and basic monster rights. Then, in the Empathy era of monster-verse history, came the Great Mythological War. Communities of different species, creatures, and monster-types battled each other for years. 

Over time, alliances were made to prevail in the war. Strong alliances grew between witches and vampires, different subspecies of were-creatures, elemental monsters, and more. Then later, it was only a matter of time until the leaders of each creature community realized the importance of accepting and tolerating one another, to defeat a common shared enemy. 

The human.

The Great Mythological Wars came at a great cost, but ultimately ended up in a society where different monsters and creatures lived amongst one another. 

Nonetheless, traditions were hard to break. There was still an unspoken hierarchy of creatures in the society. And as always, vampires were at the top. With their intelligent disposition, alluring nature, and powerful abilities, it was no wonder why vampires were respected back then and were still respected now. 

And for some traditional families, the concept of purity was still prevalent. While mixed-creatures were a common thing in the monster-verse, some creatures, particularly the vampire, scowled upon any interaction that involved mating or unionizing with another creature. 

Jaemin’s father’s family was one of the most well-respected vampire families, with their lineages tracing back to the original founders of the vampire community. The longevity of the vampire line was important to the family, which was the reason why there was such a backlash when it was revealed that the son of the most influential vampire families, was to unionize with a werewolf. 

The birth of Jaemin and his twin brother Jeno was considered of great importance in the monster society. Vampires and werewolves were long-term enemies, and even with the resolution of The Great Mythological Wars, the two communities kept their distance from each other, maintaining a civil, but icy relationship. 

So, the idea of a union between a vampire and a werewolf was already considered scandalous. What more the idea of a half-vampire, half-werewolf creature. 

It turned out nature had its own way of preserving tradition. For Jaemin was born a full vampire, while Jeno was born a full werewolf. And ever since their births, the lens of society’s scrutiny was placed on them, making sure that the twins would carry out their legacy for the two monster communities. 

Jeno respected his legacy and did his best to be the best werewolf he could be. 

Jaemin, however, wanted nothing more but to best vampire in _history_. 

Third year at NCT Academy was the beginning of creature specialization for students. The curriculum began to be more tailored to the identity of each student, ensuring that the student reaches their maximum potential. It was also seen as a preliminary test – a test to see, who really would stand out among their community, and among the monster-verse.

Jaemin had big shoes to fill. Being the son of the legendary vampire, Doyoung, Jaemin knew he had to fulfill society’s expectations of him. Doyoung was heir to a strong line of psionic vampires, and it was only time Jaemin found out if he too, was blessed with the same abilities as his father, and as his forefathers. 

Some vampires graduate from NCT Academy knowing that they are nothing more than a regular vampire. The thought made Jaemin shudder in fear. He could not be considered _normal_. He wanted to be the best. 

Jaemin stood at the center of the room, basking in the newfound silence of the dorm. For once, Jaemin could enjoy the privilege of the dark, and finally practice his dark meditation. He promptly closed the curtains and doors shut, ensuring no light could pass through. Once Jaemin made sure that his surroundings were to his liking, Jaemin sat cross-legged on the floor, laid his hands on his thighs, and closed his eyes. 

Jaemin felt a swirl of dark energy surrounding him, and started levitating off the floor. He made sure to focus on the core of his energy, reaching from the depths within. Dark meditation was of great importance of vampires, especially psionic ones. And while Jaemin couldn’t be sure of the true nature of his vampire abilities until later at the middle of the year, Jaemin was not about to shirk from his vampire duties. 

Jaemin breathed steadily, feeling the dark energy grow inside of him. He never had a problem with feeling weak, or inferior, but Jaemin had to admit that this dark meditation gave him a newfound energy that he could not have experienced before.

Just as Jaemin was feeling of the peak of his energy, Jaemin heard the doorknob rattling. Suddenly, a surge of irritation came inside him. Jaemin tried his best to ignore it, and continue on with his meditation, but it was of no use. Jaemin lost his sense of focus, and reluctantly brought himself onto the ground, and stopped his meditation.

Heaving a great sigh, Jaemin stood up, and walked towards the door, flicking the lights on with such a displeased attitude. Jaemin thought to himself that if it was Renjun coming back for one of his belongings that he might have forgotten, then the title of ‘best friend’ may very well be revoked. With a displeased attitude, Jaemin opened the door, ready to bark at the nerve of the intruder.

To his unpleasant surprise, it was a zombie. This must have been his new roommate, Shotaro. 

“Hi!” Shotaro said cheerily, although with a great deal of shyness. “You’re… Jaemin, right? I’m Shotaro. I’m your roommate.”

“Great,” Jaemin said, still bubbling in irritation over the interruption of his valued dark meditation. Jaemin gave Shotaro a blank stare, observing how the other started to fidget in discomfort. “What are you waiting for? Come in.”

This caused Shotaro to fumble, quickly grabbing his suitcases from the floor and rushing inside the dorm. Jaemin shut the door and turned around, watching his new roommate. 

“This room is…” Shotaro began, but then paused, as if he were thinking what word to say. “Dark.”

Jaemin fought the urge to roll his eyes. “I’m a vampire.”

“Ah, yeah!” Shotaro said sheepishly, rubbing a hand behind his neck. “I mean, I know that. I, uh, I don’t mind. I’m a zombie.”

“I know.”

“…Yeah,” Shotaro responded meekly, and Jaemin wanted nothing more for this conversation to end. “I’m, uh… I’m going to settle in. Unpack. Yes.”

Jaemin waved a dismissive hand. “Go,” Jaemin said, as he walked to his side of the dorm. Now with Renjun’s stuff gone, the other half of the room was bare, as if no one lived in it. He briefly wondered what Shotaro would do with his side. “That’s your side, obviously. I’m a vampire, so I need the dark. I hope that’s not a problem with you.”

“Oh, no, not at all,” Shotaro said, pausing from opening his suitcases. “Um… Well I’m part of the undead too, so… dark is also our thing.”

Jaemin raised an eyebrow but chose not to comment. He sat by his study desk and took his time to observe his new roommate. Shotaro was… 

Well, he looked like a typical zombie, Jaemin supposed. Washed out complexion, scars all over his face and his body, and ash-colored hair. But what stood out the most was Shotaro’s eyes. His eyes represented innocence, a spark of lively purity. It differed from the typical, lifeless eyes of a zombie. Jaemin pondered briefly how Shotaro’s eyes came to be as such. 

Soon, Jaemin lost interest in his new roommate. He grabbed his ghoulphone and started scrolling mindlessly on his apps. Maybe it was time for him to check in on his brother. 

As he opened his messaging app to send a greeting to Jeno, a soft voice broke into the room. “I’m done.” Jaemin looked up from his phone to see Shotaro’s side of the room. 

It was… still bare.

The only belongings from Shotaro that Jaemin could see was study materials on his study desk. Other than that, the room was exactly as Renjun left it.

Jaemin shot Shotaro a confused look. “…That’s it?” Jaemin asked. “Do you have any other stuff that you’re going to bring in? Furniture? Anything?”

“Uh, no,” Shotaro responded shyly. “I don’t… Zombies don’t really keep personal belongings.”

“Ah.” Jaemin said simply, unable to relate. Vampires were materialistic creatures and held great importance on material things. 

Shotaro cleared his throat. “I’m, uh, I’m going out, if that’s okay…?”

Jaemin was perplexed. “I’m your roommate,” Jaemin said flatly. “Not your keeper. You can do whatever you want.”

Shotaro looked slightly taken aback at Jaemin’s response and tried to diffuse the awkwardness with a small chuckle. “Uh, yeah…” Shotaro paused, and Jaemin waited for him to continue, impatient for the conversation to end. Jaemin still felt the irritation and dissatisfaction from an interrupted dark meditation session, and his displeasure only grew the more the two of them interacted. “Well, I’m going to the graveyard, actually. Uh, do you want to come?”

Graveyard? What would Jaemin do at a _graveyard_? 

Shotaro seemed to notice Jaemin’s confusion, and quickly retracted his words. “I mean, you don’t have to,” Shotaro uttered hastily. “I’m… I’m gonna go. It’s nice to meet you, Jaemin.”

Jaemin gave Shotaro a curt nod, and waited for Shotaro to exit the dorm. As he watched Shotaro hurriedly walk towards the door, Jaemin remembered something and made sure to bring it up. “Wait,” Jaemin called out. “Do you have a key?”

Jaemin had to ask. He was not willing to experience another occasion of Shotaro’s fumbling with the doorknob interrupting whatever Jaemin was doing. 

“I do, but I don’t think it works…”

“Let me see,” Jaemin inspected the key Shotaro handed out to him and let out a noise of disapproval. “These are the old keys. I’m going to give you mine and you have it duplicated, okay? So that you can open the door yourself.”

Jaemin quickly took his key out of his drawers and passed it on to Shotaro. Shotaro muttered a quick thank you and headed towards the door, making sure that the lights were turned off. Jaemin sensed a feeling of ease rise into him, as _finally_ , he could have time alone, and he could continue with his dark meditation.

As he walked towards his meditation spot, he felt something wrong in the room. There was still _light_. Jaemin quickly turned to the source of light and felt the same feeling of irritation bubbling inside him again.

Shotaro didn’t close the door properly.

“He’s a human!”

Renjun's sudden appearance at the dining table in the Monster Hall interrupted Jaemin’s mini session of daydreaming. Before Renjun appeared, Jaemin was sitting with Jeno and Donghyuck, victim to their bouts of public displays of affection. 

The first day of third year was typically spent as an orientation day for the start of the specialized curriculum. As a vampire, his new classes started after sunset, and so he took the initiative to come to dinner to meet his friends, lest he stay cooped up in his dorm until his class starts.

Third year curriculum still had general education subjects, which is a way for students to transition into fully specialized curriculums. Jaemin knew he shared some classes with his friends, but it wasn’t till later in the week where he would meet them. As such, Jaemin made sure to use common times such as dinners or study hall breaks to catch up with his friends.

“Thank ghouls you’re here,” Jaemin said to Renjun, completely forgetting what Renjun had to say. “These two were-freaks were drowning me with their couple-yness.”

“You’re just jealous that you’re still single.” Jeno said cheekily, and Jaemin imitated him with gibberish.

“Who's a human?” Donghyuck asked Renjun, and Jaemin shot a confused look to Renjun. 

“Human? Why are we talking about humans?”

Renjun scowled at Jaemin. “Did you not hear what I just said?” Renjun said. “Anyway, if you could kindly listen to me, here's who. My roommate. He's a freaking human.”

Jaemin, Jeno, and Donghyuck gave Renjun a bewildered look. “You're kidding.” Donghyuck said. 

“What kind of joke is that?” Renjun snapped. “He's a human, alright. Like, fully human. He's not even half-creature.”

That was weird. NCT Academy was an institution for monsters and creatures, a safe haven from the common shared enemy. Humans were never enrolled in the academy, and they were never expected to. The monster-verse made sure to keep their distance from humans. 

“Are you sure?” Jeno asked. “Maybe he's a witch. Or an android?”

“No,” Renjun responded. “He is human. Looks like one, talks like one and acts like one. He even introduced himself as a human.”

“No way,” Donghyuck commented. “There's no way there would be a _human_ student in the academy.”

“Well there is, and there's more to it too,” Renjun paused for effect, then lowered his voice. “He's the headmaster's son.”

The drop of information led to a busy of reactions among the four monsters.

“The headmaster has a son?”

“A human?!”

“So Chenle was right?”

Renjun chose to respond to Donghyuck. “Yeah, apparently,” Renjun said. “So, I can't even try to question why my roommate’s a human, or why he's here in the academy.”

“Because he's the headmaster’s son.” Jeno supplied gravely, and Renjun nodded. 

“How is he?” Donghyuck inquired, true to his inquisitive nature. “Is he as bad as everyone says humans are? Did he try to kill you?”

Renjun shook his head no. “He's pretty nice, actually. A bit shy,” Renjun answered candidly. “If anything, I might have accidentally killed him.”

“Did you do the fire thing?”

Renjun rolled his eyes at Jeno. “Yes, I did the fire thing.”

As a fire elemental, Renjun had the ability to turn himself into a corporeal form of fire whenever he experienced great emotion. The shock of having a human roommate probably was the culprit.

“I mean, it wasn’t that extreme,” Renjun continued. “It was just my hair. But that still freaked him out.”

“Weird,” Donghyuck said. “I’m gonna try and ask my dads if they know anything. I mean, I had no idea that Headmaster Taeyong had a son.”

None of them knew. For the longest time, students thought that the great Headless Headmaster Taeyong was in no union, and had no family. And apparently, that was not the case.

“Whatever. I mean, he’s not bad. It’s just weird,” Renjun said, and the rest of the group hummed thoughtfully. “At least he’s not, like, a vampire.”

Jeno and Donghyuck chortled at Renjun’s comment while Jaemin did his best to crumple a napkin and throw it towards Renjun. With a quick lift of his pointer finger, Renjun managed to light the napkin aflame, letting it turn to nothing but ash. 

“Screw you,” Jaemin said bitterly. 

Renjun shrugged cheekily and took a piece of bread from Jaemin’s plate. After savoring his first bite, Renjun asked the were-couple, “So how’s life for you two lovebirds?”

Jaemin groaned in irritation as Jeno shot Renjun a wholesome smile. “It’s amazing,” Jeno shared happily. “We we’re up all night –” 

“Okay, we don’t need to know!” Jaemin interrupted, not willing to hear of any nightly escapades his brother might have had with his boyfriend. 

Donghyuck stuck out his tongue at Jaemin. “We we’re talking, doof,” Donghyuck retorted. “Keep this dinner wholesome and PG.”

“Besides,” Jeno cut in. “It’s not me and Hyuckie we want to hear. It’s Jaemin and his new zombie best friend.”

Jaemin deliberately ignored Donghyuck and Renjun’s teasing remarks and gave an unimpressed look to his twin brother. “He interrupted my dark meditation yesterday.”

Donghyuck snorted, then covered his mouth as if he were somewhat embarrassed. “Sorry, I still can’t get over the fact that you call it ‘dark meditation’,” Donghyuck made sure to say the words in a menacing tone. “Like, what’s wrong with calling it just ‘meditation’? Why do vampires have to go the extra mile to be edgy and call it ‘dark meditation’? Do you guys even have ‘light meditation’?”

“They do, actually,” Jeno contributed meaningfully. “Solar vampires. They’re rare, but they exist.” 

Renjun gave a brief look of disgust towards the couple, who started going on a tangent on the types of vampires in the vampire world and turned to Jaemin. “So?” Renjun asked. “I interrupt your dark meditation all the time. In fact, you barely meditate when I was your roommate.”

“Well, you’re different,” Jaemin defended weakly. “I barely know the guy.” 

“Oh yeah,” Donghyuck butted in. “Renjun texted me about how you were creaturist. Not cool, Jaemin, live in the now.”

Jaemin could not help but let an offended noise. “I’m not creaturist, screw you Renjun! Plus, _plus_ , he didn’t close the door properly.”

“Are you implying you don’t like your roommate because he… did not close the door properly?”

Irritation forming towards his brother, Jaemin took a deep breath. “I was going to meditate.”

“Yeah, but you can just close the door after him, what’s the big deal?” Donghyuck said, to which Renjun and Jeno agreed.

“I agree, it’s not like the door is so far away.”

“You could just tell him to close it properly next time.”

“Maybe it’s a zombie thing,” Donghyuck pondered aloud. “They don’t really like doors.”

Jaemin was briefly reminded of how minimal Shotaro’s belongings were in the dorm. What _did_ zombies like, then?

“Graveyards,” Renjun answered, and Jaemin did not realize he voiced his thoughts out loud. “They often… congregate—” 

“– Congregate –”

“– Shut up Donghyuck,” Renjun interrupted back. “I honestly have no idea what they do in the graveyards. But that’s where they often are, I guess.”

“Oh, graveyard parties are fun,” Jeno said. “They really know how to _liven_ up the party. Get it?”

Everyone ignored Jeno’s pun. 

“They have parties?” Jaemin asked. Parties, or more often referred to as gatherings, were common in the vampire community. Vampire gatherings were either dull and vapid, or extremely dangerous. There was never any in-between. “Don’t zombies just… walk around aimlessly around the graveyard?”

“You really are creraturist!” Donghyuck exclaimed amusedly, and Jaemin was quick to defend himself. 

“I’m not!” Jaemin said in a high-strung voice. “I just don’t know anything about zombies.”

“Then get to know them,” Renjun said simply. “Anyway, I gotta go. I’m meeting the spirit trio.”

The spirit trio consisted of a banshee, a poltergeist, and a phantom named Xiaojun, Hendery, and Yangyang. The three of them were infamous for their proclivity on creating mischief and mayhem around the academy – some might say it was a miracle that they have not been _expelled_ from campus. Jaemin did not know them very well personally (except for Xiaojun, whom he worked with for several class projects and formed a friendship with), but he knew Renjun were extremely close with the trio. 

“Hyuckie and I got to go as well,” Jeno said, standing up. “Our class starts soon.”

Jaemin hummed, remembering that werewolves and vampires often had schedules in the night, matching well with their nature. If Jeno and Donghyuck’s class starts soon, that meant Jaemin’s were to start soon too. The four of them bid their farewells and Jaemin walked out of the hall, ready to face a new world of vampire education. 

“Jaemin, a word.”

Jaemin begrudgingly watched as his classmates quickly dispersed from the room. Some chose to teleport – others opted to turn into their bat forms. Jaemin wanted to quickly return to his dorm, but unfortunately Father Doyoung asked him to stay. 

Walking towards his father at the end of the hall, Jaemin prepared himself for whatever lecture or ‘motivational speech’ his father might provide him. Vampires by nature are very competitive, and Jaemin witnessed that aspect just in his first day. 

Professor Irene, the head representative of the vampire cluster in the academy, emphasized the importance of doing well. Vampires who did okay were to proceed to the normal vampire curriculum in the start of their fifth year, but those who excelled were guaranteed a spot in the advanced curriculum, and everyone knew how prestigious the advanced curriculum was. 

The issue with the advanced curriculum, however, was that it only provided five top students to enter. The ranking of these students would change over time, and the cumulative ranking at the fourth year would determine admission to the curriculum at the start of the student’s fifth year. This meant Jaemin had to do well. Always. 

“I need you to prepare for the Welcoming Dinner of the Vampire Society,” Jaemin’s father said simply. “You know how important the Vampire Society is.”

The Vampire Society was well-known as the coterie of well-respected third year and above vampire students in the monster-verse. Since the establishment of NCT Academy, every vampire inducted in the society was known for brilliant contributions, research, creations, and more – whether malicious or benevolent. Jaemin’s father was the chancellor of the society, which meant Jaemin knew very well the importance of the society.

“I’m in?” Jaemin asked stupidly, to which his father raised an eyebrow. 

“Of course,” Doyoung replied. “You _are_ my son.”

His father’s response set alight a feeling of warmth and pride inside Jaemin. “Well, what should I do? What should I wear?”

“Definitely not you’re wearing now,” Doyoung scanned Jaemin’s outfit with a strong expression of distaste. Jaemin felt a little bit offended – he took pride in the vampire robes he purchased over the summer. “I’ll ask your Auntie Taeyeon to send over some formal suits. Moving on, I expect you to be assimilating with the right groups of people. No respectable vampire associates with the hoodlums of the society.”

Jaemin nodded, understanding his father’s words. Vampires were already an exclusive community, more so with the elite. “When is it again?”

“On the first eve of the following month,” Doyoung replied, then seemed to remember something important. “Oh, that’s right. Taeyong wants us vampires to make more of an effort to be… inclusive with other monsters. So, I need you to bring a date. A non-vampire.”

“Can’t I just bring Jeno?” Jaemin asked, to which his father gave an incredulous look. Jaemin felt a little bit foolish for asking, forgetting that Jeno was not a fan of the vampire community (much like how Jaemin was not so much fond for the were-creature community either). “Right, stupid question. I’ll just bring Renjun then.”

At the mention of Renjun’s name, his father’s face lit up. “Oh, you must,” Doyoung insisted. “Renjun is such a lovely kid. You should try to be like him more, you know?” 

“Okay, bye,” Jaemin said, regretting the time he ever introduced Renjun to his father. Ever since their first meeting together, Renjun and his father formed a quick camaraderie at the expense of Jaemin’s dignity. The two of them enjoyed poking fun at Jaemin, and Renjun particularly enjoyed tattling to Doyoung about the troubles Jaemin would get into. “I’m leaving, bye, love you father.”

“Bye son,” Doyoung said amusedly. “Wait, before you go, how’s your roommate? What’s his name… Mr. Osaki?”

“Shotaro,” Jaemin supplied. “He’s fine, I guess. I don’t really know him.”

“Well make the effort to, okay? He’ll be your roommate until fifth year.”

Jaemin could not wait for the start of fifth year. 

For some special reason, Shotaro’s way of focusing on his assignments was to putter around the room. Shotaro would look at his notes, stand up from his desk, walk around the room, return to his desk, then repeat. He knew zombies had a particular way of living, but he did not know that it was _this_ irritating.

It drove Jaemin crazy. 

Jaemin tolerated it for the first few days of the week, but the weekend was coming shortly and Jaemin could not entertain the idea of being stuck with his roommate in the weekends who had this type of work ethic. Jaemin needed his peace and quiet, and that definitely won’t happen with his roommate strolling around the room as if he was taking a field trip around the dorm. 

“Could you stop that?” 

Jaemin’s voice made Shotaro jump, stopping him from taking another step in the room. Shotaro looked at Jaemin confusedly, and Jaemin had to restrain himself from likening Shotaro to a cute puppy. 

(Because Shotaro was not cute. He’s annoying.)

“That!” Jaemin threw his hands in the air. “Whatever you’re doing now, could you stop it?”

Sadly, Shotaro looked more confused than he did before. “…Studying?”

Jaemin let out a light scoff. “Does your studies require you to walk around the room aimlessly? It’s distracting.”

Suddenly, Shotaro lit up in realization, and immediately blushed. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” Shotaro said hurriedly. “It’s just, that’s how I concentrate. Well, zombies really. We’re very mobile creatures.”

“Uhuh,” Jaemin quirked an eyebrow. Zombies really are peculiar creatures. “It’s really distracting. Could you… I don’t know, can’t you study in the graveyard or something?”

Shotaro gave Jaemin a sheepish smile. “I would, I really would,” Shotaro answered honestly. “But there’s an event at the graveyards today, and it’s too crowded there. I need to focus for a test tomorrow.”

Oh, how frustrating the world is! “How about the library?” Jaemin asked. “Can’t you study there?”

Shotaro looked down on the floor, looking embarrassed for some reason. “I’m banned from the library this semester.”

Had it not been for Jaemin’s advanced hearing, he would have missed Shotaro’s confession. “I’m sorry, what?” Jaemin said, perplexed. “How are you banned from the library? The semester literally just started.”

“Uh, it’s a long story,” Shotaro responded. “Look, I’m sorry about distracting you, I didn’t know. I… I can try visiting my friend’s dorm? I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

Normally, Jaemin would try to retract his words, try to make Shotaro stay and ignore his own discomfort. But in all honesty, Jaemin had a rough day, from extensive vampire history lessons to practical vampire duel training. Jaemin needed to recharge, not to witness a zombie walk around the room. Jaemin sighed and tried to compose himself. 

“Yeah, I’m sorry too,” Jaemin said finally. “It’s just been a long day, and –” 

“—No, I completely understand. It’s fine,” Shotaro tried to reason. “Sungchan wanted to hang out with me anyway.”

“Okay.” Jaemin watched as Shotaro jammed in his notebooks into a canvas bag, quirkily designed with bold letters saying: _What does it take to become a zombie? **Dead-ication**_. Jaemin had to admit it was pretty cheeky. 

“I’ll see you later, Jaemin.” Jaemin gave a small smile to Shotaro and nodded. He waited for Shotaro to leave the dorm, and felt a sense of relief growing inside of him. Until he realized…

Shotaro did not close the door properly.

Again. 

It took a great amount of willpower for Jaemin not to close the door shut. 

“I can’t.” 

Jaemin gawked at his best friend’s response. The Welcoming Dinner of the Vampire Society was coming soon, and he needed to find a date. All of Jaemin’s other vampire acquaintances have found dates for the dinner, which made Jaemin pathetically useless. How hard was it to ask someone to accompany him for a dinner?

“What do you mean you can’t?” Jaemin whined. “I need a date. My father will kill me if I don’t come with one. Plus, I’ll look like a total loser.”

Renjun closed his palms, stopping the fire experiment that he was starting with his hands. Jaemin learned that Renjun was learning to create material forms through his fire, and Renjun was more than willing to master it. “You’ll look like a total loser regardless if you have a date.”

“Hey!”

“Ask Jeno.”

“Ugh, you know he hates vampires.”

“Donghyuck?”

“No, he’s embarrassing. I think my father is scared of him too.”

Renjun snorted. “Chenle?”

“I’m not willing to listen to the fortunes of the world for the entire dinner, okay.”

“Oh my ghoul, you’re impossible,” Renjun paused, thinking. “What about the spirit trio?”

“Are you serious?” Jaemin asked Renjun with an incredulous tone. “Do you want me to get kicked out from the society?”

“Xiaojun’s pretty decent.”

“He’s a banshee,” Jaemin pointed out. “He’ll break the eardrums of every vampire and every other creature in the dinner.”

The two fell silent, pondering who else Jaemin could ask to accompany him to the dinner. The thing with Jaemin was that he was friendly, and he had plenty of acquaintances, but he preferred to be close to only a select few, who unfortunately were all occupied. 

“Oh my ghoul,” Renjun suddenly exclaimed. “What about Mark?”

Mark was an anthropomorphic spider, and was well-known and well-loved throughout campus. With his easygoing disposition, Mark was able to befriend anyone from anywhere. Jaemin had the pleasure of befriending him in his first year, and they were able to maintain a friendship ever since. 

Jaemin spotted Mark in the forest, just as he expected. Anthropodians enjoyed the forest, allowing them to be in touch with nature. “Mark!” 

Mark turned around and gave Jaemin a wide smile. “Jaemin!” Mark held out his arms for a hug, and Jaemin quickly let himself be enveloped by Mark. Hugs from Mark were interesting, as Mark had eight arms to boast. The two of them quickly let each other go, and Mark spoke again. “How are you? Everything good?”

“Yeah, no, it’s great,” Jaemin replied. “Actually, I was looking for you. You know about the Vampire Society, right?”

Mark hummed in response. “What about it?”

“Well, I need a date, otherwise my vampire dad is going to kill me,” Jaemin explained. “Can you be my date?”

Mark winced in response, and Jaemin steadily prepared himself for whatever Mark had to say. “Ah, I’m sorry,” Mark said sadly. “Someone already asked me to be their date already.”

Jaemin cursed whoever this person was. “Who?”

“Kang Mina.”

Jaemin fought the urge to roll his eyes. “Damn it.”

“Sorry,” Mark said, and Jaemin could tell that he did feel bad. “Did you try asking Renjun?”

“I asked everyone,” Jaemin said. “No one said yes, obviously.” 

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” Jaemin replied honestly. “I’ll see, I guess.”

** FAMILY **

[JAEMIN]

father ( ㇏ (•̀ ᵥᵥ •́) ノ )

can i not have a date for the society (´ ・ ཀ ・ `)

[JENO]

u really cant find anyone to go to a dinner w u?

u fucking suck lol loser 

[FATHER]

Language, Jeno

[JENO]

໒ ( =  ᴥ =) ʋ

[FATHER]

But I have to agree with Jeno

It is custom for vampires to have a date for their first dinner of the society 

I won’t allow my son looking like a complete dud for the first dinner

[JAEMIN]

everyone i asked said no!!!

and considering UR standards, i don’t really have a huge pool of selection

back me up @PAPA

[PAPA]

Your father and your twin are right 

No date means no hope 

You know that dinner was my first date with your father

[JENO]

ooh romantic 

[JAEMIN]

/ ＼ ＾ 𝅒 _ 𝅒 ＾ ／ \

please

[FATHER]

No

“…Jaemin?”

Jaemin quickly got off of Shotaro’s bed, and scrambled to get to his side to his room. When Renjun was still roommates with Jaemin, Jaemin had the habit of going on top of Renjun’s bed and screaming into his pillow whenever he was frustrated. Screaming inside a coffin didn’t give Jaemin as much satisfaction as it did screaming into a pillow on a bed. 

Old habits die hard, as Jaemin immediately sought the empty bed for comfort, forgetting whose bed it was now. Jaemin sighed and sat on the chair by Shotaro’s study desk. “Sorry,” Jaemin said. “I used scream into Renjun’s pillow whenever I’m going through something. I didn’t hear you come in.”

“It’s fine, I don’t mind,” Shotaro said, sitting down on his bed facing Jaemin. “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah, everything’s perfect,” Jaemin said flatly. “Except for the part where my vampire dad is forcing me to find a date for this fancy vampire dinner, and everyone I asked is unavailable.”

“Have you asked all of your vampire friends?”

“I need a non-vampire date,” Jaemin said sullenly. “If I could take a vampire for my date, I wouldn’t be here right now.”

“Oh,” Shotaro responded. “That’s tough.”

Jaemin ran his fingers through his hair, ruining the perfectly gelled hairstyle he invested time into styling. He supposed it didn’t matter anymore. He needed to find a date, or risk looking like a total joke to the vampire community. 

He took the opportunity to observe his roommate. Jaemin begrudgingly accepted the fact that Shotaro looked… nice. Shotaro looked sweet. Jaemin felt a little bad for not being a little bit more friendly to his roommate, considering that Shotaro was nothing but amicable to Jaemin. Sure, Shotaro was clueless and too innocent for his own good, but Shotaro never intended for any harm to happen. Perhaps Jaemin was a little bit too mean. Jaemin always prided himself in being friendly to anyone, regardless of who they are.

Maybe his friends and his father were right. Maybe he should make an effort to get to know his roommate.

Then, an idea lit up in his mind. 

“Do you have any plans on Saturday?”

Shotaro shrugged. “I’ll probably go to the graveyard, as usual. Sungchan wants to try out a game he bought in town a while back.”

Who the hell is Sungchan?

(Anyway.)

“Can that wait?” Jaemin asked, and immediately spoke again after seeing Shotaro’s perplexed reaction. “I mean, can you be my date? For the dinner thing?”

Shotaro let out an awkward chuckle. “Me?” Shotaro asked, pointing to himself. Jaemin nodded. “You don’t… well, you don’t really like me.”

Jaemin grimaced. “I don’t _know_ you,” Jaemin swiftly corrected, prompting a slow nod from Shotaro. “I think this dinner will be a perfect opportunity for us roommates to get to know each other, don’t you think?”

It was perfect, Jaemin thought. Father Doyoung wanted a date that was not a vampire and was well-behaved and respectable. Shotaro was decent enough. Besides, Jaemin’s father wanted him to be closer to his roommate. 

Jaemin was ready to share the necessary details Shotaro needed to know. He was confident that Shotaro would say yes. Everyone loved fancy dinners, didn’t they?

“I… I’m sorry, no,” Shotaro said slowly, and Jaemin blinked. He took a moment to process what his roommate said. “I don’t really feel comfortable… being your date for that dinner thing…”

Now, Jaemin was just offended. “Why not?”

Shotaro couldn’t help but look uncomfortable. “I’m sorry, Jaemin, I really am, it’s just…” Shotaro paused, looking as if he was trying to find the right words to say. “I mean… you haven’t really been the nicest to me since we first met. And I appreciate you trying, but it just seems like you wouldn’t have tried to know me if you didn’t need me.”

Jaemin was stunned into silence. He didn’t know his roommate was that perceptive, that intuitive. Jaemin would have apologized, but that would mean admission for the fact that Jaemin wasn’t exactly the nicest to Shotaro, and Jaemin still found himself too prideful to admit so. Shotaro took Jaemin’s silence as an invitation to speak again, and Jaemin cursed himself internally for it probably gave Shotaro the confirmation he needed. 

“Besides, I already promised Sungchan I’d spend time with him…”

(Was Jaemin really above cursing this Sungchan person?)

“Right,” Jaemin finally said, defeated. “Well, then. You have fun with Mr. Sungchan.”

“I hate you.”

Jaemin sighed and shook his head. As the ultimate last resort, Jaemin decided to beg his twin into going with him. He figured the dignity lost from repeatedly begging and promising his brother favors was better than the dignity lost from going to the dinner solo. 

“Can you shut up?” Jaemin hissed. “I already said I was going to do whatever you want me to do.”

Jeno scoffed in response. “You know I don’t like the vampire community,” Jeno hissed back. “Would _you_ willingly go with me for a were-creature gathering?”

Out of respect for himself, Jaemin would have typically said no. But since the unwelcome rejection from his roommate, Jaemin had to lose the luxury of his pride. “I would so,” Jaemin retorted. “Because I’m a good brother.”

“Right.”

“Oh suck it up!” Jaemin complained, hitting his twin on the shoulder. “Think of it as doing a favor for Father. He’ll find a way to blame you if I ended up going to this dinner alone.”

“No,” Jeno retorted. “Father loves me. He would blame _you_.”

Jaemin hated to admit it, but it was true. Ever since Jaemin shared his little story with Shotaro to Jeno, Donghyuck, and Renjun, Jaemin had to make sure that the news of Shotaro’s rejection wouldn’t reach his father. It would probably break his father’s heart, knowing that a creature, a _zombie_ of all creatures, rejected Jaemin just because he didn’t want to go.

Before Jaemin could continue instigating a bickering session with his twin, his parents approached them with grand smiles on their faces. Both his father and papa looked dashing – the epitome of power and grace. Jaemin looked at his parents in awe, admiring how perfect they seemed to be together. Even if the world tried to separate them, his father and papa fought against society to be with each other. Jaemin wondered if he would ever meet anyone he’d match so well with. 

“Well just look at our sons, Doie,” Papa Jaehyun mused. “Both of you look perfectly splendid.”

Doyoung hummed in agreement, and looked at Jaemin. “What did you do to get your twin to agree?”

Jaemin shrugged, not willing to share the pathetic attempts he had to take to convince Jeno. “We’re twins!” Jaemin exclaimed. “We come in a package, of course Jeno would agree.”

Jeno gave an overly saccharine smile, somewhat mocking in nature. Jaemin opted to ignore it for the sake of his parents. “Alright, the program will start soon,” Doyoung said, clapping his hands together. “The two of you, behave.”

The last word was said so forcefully that Jaemin immediately straightened his posture. As kids, whenever Jeno or Jaemin, or even the both of them, stepped over the line, the two of them would immediately experience the wrath of the dark vampire form of their father.

And for anyone curious, no, no one wants to see the dark form of any vampire. Particularly an angry one.

“Have fun, kids,” Jaehyun said brightly, a complement to Doyoung’s more mature disposition. “I’ll go help your dad prepare.”

Shortly enough, the program started. With great poise and countenance, Father delivered an impactful welcoming speech, highlighting the importance to upkeep the brilliance of the vampire society through effectual partnerships with other creatures of the monster-verse. After his father came Professor Irene, who congratulated the new inductees of the Vampire Society. And after Professor Irene came notable society alumni, who shared how the society impacted their future for the better.

Jaemin felt inspired. He was determined to be one of the alumni who would share his own experiences to students in the future. 

After a couple of intermission performances by vampire musicians, dinner commenced. Jaemin took this opportunity to mingle with his vampire acquaintances, letting Jeno enjoy the luxury meals to himself. 

“What do you think would be your classification?” One of Jaemin’s vampire acquaintances, Olivia, asked. “I have a feeling I might be an emotion vampire. I really feel it within me.”

Jaemin hummed thoughtfully. Emotion vampires varied among different emotional groups. Knowing Olivia, she would probably end up being a rage vampire. 

“Yeah, definitely,” another of Jaemin’s vampire peers, Hyunjin, agreed. “I’m not sure what I’d be.”

“Sex,” Felix interjected, causing the group to laugh. “You’re a sex vampire.”

“Oh shut up,” Hyunjin said, though his tone was cheeky.

“What about you, Jaemin?” Hyunjin’s cousin, Yeji, asked. “You’re probably going to be a psionic one, like your dad, right?”

“Most likely.” Jaemin responded. 

Jaemin couldn’t imagine being anything else. He didn’t want to entertain the possibility of him _not_ being a psionic vampire. 

Jaemin socialized with the group for a little longer, allowing himself to immerse in the mindless chatter. Jaemin has been involved with this acquaintance group since first year, after readily identifying which vampires he deemed respectable enough to mingle with. And while they never became particularly close to each other, Jaemin wouldn’t be surprised if they start forming stronger bonds with the start of the specialized curriculums. 

Finally the event was over, and Jaemin had no other goal but to return to his dorm. He liked being with friends, sure, but at the end of the day, Jaemin sought the comfort of solitude to recharge. When he was younger, Jaemin had more energy to expend for socializing. But now at the ripe age of 20, Jaemin felt himself grow mellow, learning how to better appreciate the company of his own self. 

Jaemin decided to take a walk to his dorm instead of utilizing vampire teleportation or his bat form. He thought it’d be a good way to destress a bit. 

As he neared his dorm, he overheard chatter coming from the inside. It took him a moment to realize that it was his roommate, and an unknown voice he has never heard before. Jaemin took the opportunity to eavesdrop. 

“This game sucks,” Jaemin recognized the voice as Shotaro’s. Jaemin had to admit, he was pretty taken aback hearing Shotaro speak at a voice level that wasn’t _tiny_. “How did you even get this game?”

“My cousin recommended it to me,” Jaemin heard the other voice speak. He supposed that this voice belonged to Sungchan? If that was the case, then why were they in the dorm? Didn’t Shotaro say he would be with Sungchan in the graveyard? “Whatever, at least we tried something new.”

“Please never take this game with you ever again,” Shotaro said, and Jaemin heard the cheekiness in his voice. “It’s so bad, I can’t think of anyone who would enjoy this.”

“Well my cousin did,” Sungchan pointed out. “Anyway, where’s your roommate? When is he returning?”

The mention of Jaemin caused Jaemin to still his breath. Jaemin didn’t expect to witness his own roommate speaking about him. 

“I don’t know,” Jaemin heard Shotaro say in an impassive voice. “We don’t really talk.”

“Who is this guy anyway? He barely knows you and he’s treating you like dirt.”

Jaemin had to restrain himself from barging into the room and strangling whoever this Sungchan creature was. 

“No,” Shotaro’s voice had a lilt. “I don’t think he’s _mean_ , I just think we might have gone on the wrong foot. I mean, you know, he’s a vampire, I’m a zombie…”

“So, he’s creaturist.”

Jaemin really had to restrain himself. 

“No!” Shotaro exclaimed, and Jaemin felt a little bit touched that Shotaro defended him. “I’m sure he’s not. It’s okay, you can’t be friends with everyone. You know, he kind of reminds me of you?”

“I’m not a _jerk_!”

“No, silly, I meant he also sleeps in a coffin, like you.”

“It’s a _sarcophagus_ ,” Sungchan said. “It’s better than a coffin.”

Now Jaemin really couldn’t help but let out a scoff.

Midterms came like a ship out of control. Every student was scrambling to prepare for their midterm examinations, whether it was a written theory assessment, or a practical examination. For Jaemin, it was a mess. 

Jaemin had to study fifteen textbooks of vampire lore, to ensure that he had the sufficient breadth of knowledge of the vampire world. Not only that, Jaemin had to prepare himself for vampire dueling. This meant that he had to strengthen his dark form, lest he lose points for influence. Lastly, Jaemin had to get ready for the mock VATs, also known as the Vampire Ability Test. This test was designed to measure the abilities of a vampire, basic and specialized. It also allowed the students a hint as to what their specific classification would be.

Out of everything he had to prepare for, the VATs gave Jaemin paramount levels of stress. He’s heard his vampire peers slowly get in touch with their special abilities – Olivia managed to tap into her rage, channeling it through her core, and Hyunjin was able to practice his allure. Yet, Jaemin displayed no signs of psionic abilities. While Jaemin knew there was a possibility that he might be a late bloomer, he couldn’t help but worry.

Was Jaemin not a psionic vampire?

The pressure of the midterm examinations was the only thing on Jaemin’s mind. So much so, that he ended up getting used to Shotaro’s strange studying antics. 

Jaemin’s relationship with Shotaro did not necessarily improve, but it did not necessarily worsen either. Instead, the two of them settled to something akin to a truce – the two of them learned how to adapt to one another. As a matter of fact, Jaemin was proud to say that the two of them sometimes ate meals together. It was out of convenience, as the two of them would sometimes have less time to find their own friends, but it was progress, right?

The two of them were in their own respective sides of the room, preparing in their own ways for their own examinations. Jaemin was researching on the aspects of a psionic vampire, wondering if there were any other signs that he could have missed, while Shotaro was wandering around the room, muttering facts to himself. 

Frustration was beginning to bubble inside of Jaemin. He was sure he tried to tap into all of the aspects of a psionic vampire, so why couldn’t he feel anything? Jaemin rubbed his eyes, and decided to take a small break. As he stared mindlessly around the room, his eyes landed on Shotaro. 

Shotaro seemed to be testing himself on something, and Jaemin couldn’t help but be curious.

“What are you studying for?” Jaemin blurted out, and Shotaro stopped in his tracks. Shotaro gave Jaemin a smile. 

“Are you sure you want to know?” Shotaro asked. “It’s not the most interesting thing to learn. I’m sure vampire education’s way more interesting.”

“The grass is always greener on the other side,” Jaemin quipped. “No, but really. I don’t know any zombies other than you. Plus, I need a break from all this vampire stuff. I can’t study any vampire lore for any longer.”

Shotaro giggled, and Jaemin couldn’t help but smile at the sound. “Okay,” Shotaro said, dragging his study chair nearer to Jaemin. Jaemin was about to offer Shotaro to sit on top of his coffin, just like Renjun used to, but after seeing how Shotaro was set on carrying his chair, Jaemin let him. “I’m studying about zombie capabilities. Zombies are classified into several variations, and this midterm lets us test our ability within our variations.”

“No way,” Jaemin said, astonished. “That’s kind of like what vampires have too. Vampires have different classifications, and this midterm helps us identify which classification we fall under.”

“Oh, I guess that’s where it’s a little different for us,” Shotaro continued. “We already know our variation. For example, I’m a Type C zombie. C is for construct, meaning that I was created from the dead. Different types of zombies have different abilities, some better than others. I don’t have the ability to infect others, but I do have the ability to split my body parts.”

With that, Jaemin watched as Shotaro’s hand popped off of his wrist, and started running around the room with his fingers. Shotaro let aloud a giggle upon seeing Jaemin’s amazed reaction. “Okay, but that’s really cool, actually!” Jaemin said. “So, you can split your body parts and control it anytime?”

“Yes,” Shotaro confirmed. “It also comes with the ability to regenerate my body parts. Try it.”

“Try what?”

“Ruin my hand.”

Jaemin gave Shotaro a bewildered expression. “No, don’t worry,” Shotaro assured Jaemin. “Trust me, it’ll come back. Try it.”

Jaemin slowly stood up from his chair, and picked up Shotaro’s detached hand from the floor. After receiving a gesture of approval from Shotaro, Jaemin tossed it out of the window, causing Shotaro to laugh. 

“Seriously?” 

“What?” Jaemin said, unamused. “I’m a vampire, not some kind of beast. That’s the best I can do.” 

“Well, okay,” Shotaro said as Jaemin returned to his seat. “Watch this.”

Jaemin’s focus was entirely on Shotaro’s wrist, and surely enough, a hand started spouting up. Jaemin gave Shotaro an impressed look, fascinated at what he witnessed. “So what happens to the hand that I threw away?”

Shotaro shrugged. “It’ll fade away over time,” Shotaro said. “But yeah, that’s the basics of my variation. I’m studying the other variations since it’s important to defend yourself from certain types. Not all zombies are nice.”

“Yeah,” Jaemin said thoughtfully. “I always thought that there were just… one type of zombies, I guess.”

Shotaro shook his head. “Ah no,” Shotaro said softly. “That’s a common misconception though. Anyway, enough about me. What are you stressing out about?”

“The VATs,” Jaemin replied dejectedly. “We have the mock examination for our midterm. I’m hoping that I turn out to be the classification I want to be.”

“What’s that?”

“A psionic vampire,” Jaemin answered. “My dad is one, and so were his parents, and their parents. It’s basically in my genes to be a psionic vampire, really.”

Shotaro seemed to sense a shift in Jaemin’s tone, as his eyes softened. “But…?”

Jaemin sighed. “I’ve been trying to reach into my psionic core abilities,” Jaemin confessed. “Nothing.”

“What if you aren’t a psionic vampire?”

Jaemin couldn’t help the offended expression he gave Shotaro. “I am,” Jaemin insisted. “There’s no other way that I’m not.”

“I’m sorry,” Shotaro said softly, and Jaemin wanted to tell him that it was okay, that there was no need to be sorry, but Shotaro spoke again. “Is it really the end of the world, though, if you’re not a psionic vampire?”

“It’d be weird,” Jaemin admitted. “Everyone in my family is a psionic vampire. Your family’s probably the same variation as you, right?”

Shotaro shook his head. “No, actually,” Shotaro replied. “Like I said, I was created. I don’t know who my real ‘family’ is.”

Jaemin could not imagine not knowing who his family was. His identity was associated so strongly to the identities of both of his parents. “Oh, I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay,” Shotaro gave a small laugh. “Zombies are not really the family type. Anyway, maybe this isn’t my place to say, but I don’t think you should value yourself on whether you follow your family’s footsteps. You can be another type of vampire and still be a great vampire.”

Jaemin never thought of it that way. For all his life, Jaemin was so focused on building his identity based on what he knew, that he never thought of the possibility to be someone else. A silence fell between the two of them, but it was not awkward. It was comfortable, providing the two a moment of introspection. Jaemin decided that maybe it was time he acknowledged that Shotaro was actually a nice creature. 

“I’m sorry.” Jaemin blurted out, and Shotaro shot him a confused look. 

“About the family thing? No, it’s okay—” 

“– No, I mean, about my attitude towards you in the beginning,” Jaemin interrupted. “I… I don’t really deal well with change. And it’s our third year, a lot of things are changing. I put my frustration on you, since you’re change as well, and that wasn’t fair. I’m sorry.”

Shotaro’s eyes lit up, and it was the first time Jaemin saw Shotaro’s eyes shine so brightly. Jaemin gave Shotaro a soft smile, which quickly turned into a shocked expression as Shotaro placed a hand on top of Jaemin’s. 

It was cold. Both of them were considered the undead, so it was natural for them two be cold. But for some reason, Jaemin felt warm inside. He watched as Shotaro gave Jaemin’s hand a little squeeze. 

“Change is scary,” Shotaro said, letting go of Jaemin’s hand. Jaemin briefly felt the loss of warmth as Shotaro withdrew himself. “It’s okay.” 

As expected, Jaemin excelled in the theory of vampire lore and the arts of vampire dueling. The proud smile that his father gave him from afar was what motivated Jaemin per sessions of his examinations, and he was determined to make his father even more proud. 

Finally came the dreaded VAT exams. Jaemin watched as his peers exited the hall with a variety of reactions. Most of his peers received confirmation that their suspected classifications were theirs – Olivia came out with a smirk, letting Jaemin know that she was a rage vampire. Hyunjin shot him a wink. Felix, who was not sure about his own classification, received confirmation that he would develop as a neuronal vampire. Mia, another vampire who Jaemin was not particularly close to, was quickly identified as a psionic vampire. 

Jaemin was getting restless. Despite his fervent attempts in dark meditation and finding his core, Jaemin was not getting any closer to finding whether he was a psionic vampire. And since Jaemin wouldn’t entertain the idea of being anything but a psionic vampire, Jaemin didn’t bother trying to find a core that was not related to psionic abilities. 

(In the back of his mind, Jaemin kept on thinking about Shotaro’s words. 

_ You can be another type of vampire and still be a great vampire _ . 

Jaemin was still trying to believe that.)

The hall doors opened, and an unfamiliar vampire exited the halls with a worried look on her face. Jaemin gulped. He wasn’t sure how he’d react if his results did not go the way as planned. Shortly after, Professor Irene’s commanding voice rang into the hallways. “Jaemin,” Professor Irene called. “Enter.”

Jaemin took a deep breath and entered the hall. The doors behind him closed slowly and in front of him stood a vampiric altar, and a platform below it. Jaemin was sure that that was where the examination would take place. 

As he approached the front, he took note of the staff that was there. Jaemin’s father was there, with an expression that one might call inexpressive, but since Jaemin knew his father dearly, he knew that it was an expression of concern, nervousness. Jaemin quickly recognized the other professors as well – they were esteemed figures in the community who represented a variety of vampire classifications. 

With all his nerve, Jaemin stepped on top of the platform, and faced the professors. 

“Are you prepared?” Professor Irene asked, to which Jaemin nodded. Jaemin saw that his father shot him a small smile. His nervousness must be growing palpable. “Please assume your meditation pose.”

As Jaemin sat on the floor, Professor Irene spoke again. “I am confident you know the process,” she began. “However, for formality, let me walk you through how we will proceed with the examination.” 

Professor Irene turned to another professor who Jaemin recognized as Mark Tuan. Professor Mark was probably one of the wealthiest vampires in the community. “As you begin your meditation,” Professor Mark said. “We will observe the energy radiating from you. This would provide us an idea what your core entails, and what possible classification you would fall under. Please meditate as you normally would – nerves may interfere with the process. Do you have any questions?”

Jaemin shook his head no, and tried to compose himself. 

“We will tell you when to stop,” Professor Irene added. “You now may begin.” 

Jaemin inhaled, closed his eyes, and let out an exhale. He felt himself levitating off the floor, allowing himself to empty his mind and focus on his vampire energy radiating within him. As like all the times he practiced, he felt nothing specific – nothing that would indicate that he had a psionic core, that he would be a psionic vampire. 

Keeping the professors’ directive in mind, Jaemin tried not to think about his classification. 

But at the back of his mind, he knew that his father was watching. The professors were watching. His life was about to determined, and he had no idea what would it be. 

Suddenly, his nerves started growing. And because Jaemin knew that nerves were not appreciated in this examination, he grew more anxious trying to stifle his worries. Jaemin felt his jaw clench, and his eyes close tighter. 

As Jaemin felt himself regain composure, he heard an abrupt: “That’s enough.” 

Jaemin let himself lower down to the floor, and slowly opened his eyes. While he was standing up, he was not ready for what he saw: Professor Irene staring at him blankly. The other professors whispering amongst themselves. His father, and perhaps this was the worst of it all, his father looking at the floor, avoiding eye contact. Jaemin felt his breath hitch. 

After what felt like an eternity, Professor Irene cleared her throat. “There is absolutely no doubt that you would be a powerful vampire,” she spoke slowly, as if she were being extra cautious with her words. “In fact, your energy must have been the strongest we’ve witnessed so far. But as for your core…”

Professor Irene paused, and looked over to where Jaemin’s father was. Father Doyoung briefly took his eyes off of the floor, and landed on Jaemin. His eyes were dull, nebulous. Doyoung then turned to face Irene, and said, “Please excuse me.”

Jaemin felt he couldn’t breathe. He watched his father form into a dark cloud of mist, disappearing few seconds after. The hall was silent for a moment, and Jaemin wanted nothing but to disappear as well. 

“Jaemin,” Professor Irene continued. “I’m afraid your core is inconclusive as of now.”

Jaemin heard the door open and immediately spoke. 

“I’m not getting off of this bed.”

Jaemin’s voice must have been muffled, for he spoke directly into Shotaro’s pillow and received a soft ‘ _huh_?’ from his roommate. 

Reluctantly, Jaemin lifted his head off the pillow, and turned so that he was lying on his back. He let out a big sigh and turned so that he was facing Shotaro, who was sitting on his study chair looking concerned. 

“Should I leave?” Shotaro hesitantly asked, and Jaemin shook his head no. 

“You can stay if you want to,” Jaemin replied. “But I’m not getting off this bed. You can try the coffin tonight.”

Shotaro gave him a weird look. “I’m… just gonna go.” Shotaro said, standing up. As Shotaro stood up, Jaemin quickly sat up as well, grabbing Shotaro’s wrist. 

“Please,” Jaemin’s voice was hoarse. “Stay.”

After a while, Shotaro nodded and returned to his seat. Jaemin sighed and hugged his legs to his chest. “Are you really staying in my bed?” Shotaro asked after a moment of silence. “Because I can sleep in a coffin, but I would feel really weird if it was yours.”

Jaemin rolled his eyes at his roommates’ innocence. “I was being dramatic,” Jaemin said. “I’ll get off eventually. Just let me sulk.”

Shotaro pursed his lips, looking as if he was unsure what to do or say. Jaemin decided to speak again.

“I’m inconclusive,” Jaemin confessed. “They can’t tell what my core is. So… I need to wait till the end of the year.”

“I’m sorry,” Shotaro said. “I don’t really know what to say.”

Jaemin nodded slowly in understanding. “My father talked to me after,” Jaemin continued. “He said that it was alright, that sometimes it takes time. But you should’ve been there. He looked so disappointed.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

Jaemin scoffed. “You don’t know my father.”

“No,” Shotaro admitted. “And I don’t really have a father so I can’t say that I know what you’re going through. But like I said, change is scary. He’s… He’s adjusting. You should know that this doesn’t make you any less respected or loved.”

Jaemin pursed his lips in thought. “I just don’t want to be the only freak in my family.”

Shotaro giggled softly. “You’re a monster, Jaemin,” Shotaro said with a smile. “You are a freak. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t be here.”

Jaemin rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t help but give Shotaro a smile too. He had to admit, just having Shotaro around lifted his spirits up. Shotaro’s smile could probably light an entire universe. 

(What?)

( _Anyway_.)

“Can you tell me something?” Jaemin said, remembering something. Shotaro nodded, and urged Jaemin to go on. “Why are you banned from the library?”

Shotaro huffed and gave a small scowl. “Xiaojun.”

“Xiaojun?” Jaemin didn’t know that Shotaro was friends with Xiaojun.

“Yeah,” Shotaro said in a slightly irritated tone, though Jaemin knew that he was speaking out of affection as well. Shotaro was that kind of person. Jaemin saw himself in Shotaro at times, before he let himself become so affected with vampire affairs. “Xiaojun wanted to see me split my body parts, but he wasn’t ready. So, he screamed.”

Jaemin snorted. “He did the banshee thing?”

Shotaro nodded sullenly. “It got us both banned.”

Jaemin pursed his lips, trying not to laugh. But the idea of Xiaojun freaking out at Shotaro’s zombie abilities and picturing both Xiaojun and Shotaro’s expressions entered his imagination. Before he could help it, Jaemin burst out laughing. 

Shotaro let out a little whine, and stood up from his chair. “It’s not funny!” Shotaro whined as he lovely shoved Jaemin. Jaemin, however, still kept on laughing, especially with how humorous he found Shotaro’s reaction to be. “Stop it! I love the library!”

Still, though, Jaemin kept on laughing, and eventually Shotaro gave in and joined in too. The two of them sat on Shotaro’s bed, laughing till no sounds came out of them. After a while, a comfortable silence fell between them, and the two of them watched each other with a smile, as the rays of the dusk creeped in the room through the corners of the curtains.

“It’s still not funny, though.”

Jaemin let out a sigh of relief as he embraced his best friend. Third year was proving to be more busy than Jaemin expected, especially with a few months to the end of the semester creeping in, and while he shared a couple of his remaining general education subjects with Renjun, the both of them rarely had the quality time to spend together. 

“I missed you so much.” Jaemin said as he let go of Renjun’s hold. 

In true nature of his best friend, Renjun shot him an unamused look. “We see each other almost every day.”

“Yeah, but we haven’t had special bonding time to ourselves,” Jaemin pointed out. “ _You_ always run back to your dorm whenever you can. Do you have something to hide from me? A little affair with your little human roommate?”

Renjun lightly shoved Jaemin away, causing Jaemin to stop imitating kisses to irritate Renjun. “I’m practicing my pyrokinesis,” Renjun said, then paused, looking as if he was reflecting on something. “And what makes you say that I’m having an affair with my roommate?”

“I was joking,” Jaemin admitted, but then he smirked. “So, you are? You’re having an affair with your roommate?”

Renjun’s eyebrows turned into fire. “No!” Then Renjun’s hair turned into fire. “I’m just, you know, I’m just helping him adjust. It’s hard being a human here.”

“I bet,” Jaemin said, watching as Renjun composed himself to return to his normal form. “But you’ve never introduced me to him. And I’ve never actually seen him.”

“He has special classes.”

“Special what? Why is he even here?”

Renjun sighed. “It’s a long story,” Renjun responded. “You’ll find out more when the time is right.”

Jaemin pouted. “You’re keeping a secret from me?”

“It’s not even my secret, fool,” Renjun scolded. “Anyway, let’s just talk about us. How have you been holding up?”

Jaemin did not miss how Renjun’s tone grew softer as he asked the question. Jaemin shared his experiences to Renjun through calls and chats, but they haven’t gotten the time to sit down and discuss it. Jaemin took a deep breath and spoke.

“I don’t know,” Jaemin replied honestly. “My father’s been texting me every day, checking up on me. I think he still feels bad for how he reacted during the exam.”

Renjun shook his head disapprovingly. “Uncle Doyoung should know it’s not his fault.”

“Yeah,” Jaemin continued, ignoring Renjun’s nickname for his father. “Well he’s been extra… I don’t know. And my papa, he’s always trying to cheer me up too. But I don’t think he really understands the whole vampire stuff. At least both of them are trying.”

Renjun hummed. “Yeah, but that’s how _your_ parents are doing,” Renjun pointed out. “I asked about you.”

Jaemin felt touched at how caring his best friend was. “I’ve just been trying to find my core,” Jaemin shared. “Nothing. It still feels the same.”

“You’re still trying to find your psionic core?”

Jaemin nodded. “I just… I want to believe that it is there. But each week passes by and I lose faith in myself. I don’t want to be a failure, the only one in the family who isn’t a psionic vampire. I can’t imagine it.”

Renjun stayed silent, a subtle encouragement for Jaemin to continue. “Shotaro brought up the possibility that I might not actually be one at all.”

Jaemin knew Renjun rose his eyebrow at the mention of Shotaro’s name, but fortunately Renjun decided not to comment on it. “Is that a bad thing?”

“Psionic vampires are the most powerful vampires,” Jaemin said. “If I’m not one, then I’m weak.”

Renjun let out a noise of disapproval. “No, that’s not true,” Renjun said. “Look I don’t know anything about this vampire stuff, but you’re biased. You were raised in a line of psionic vampires. But in fact, how many powerful vampires can you name that aren’t psionic?”

“A lot,” Jaemin reluctantly admitted. “But… still.”

“You know you’re amazing, right,” Renjun said. “And you know I won’t ever say that again. You’ll be a great vampire regardless. Psionic or not.”

Jaemin did not respond, but he appreciated Renjun’s words anyway. Feeling the stress and the pressure building up inside of him, Jaemin took a deep breath and laid his head on Renjun’s shoulder. He felt Renjun lean his head on top of Jaemin’s. 

“Thanks, Renjun.”

** SHOTARO **

[SHOTARO]

Jaemin, i will return to the dorm late so dont wait up or anything :)

Just wanted to let u know!

[JAEMIN]

why? is everything okay?

[SHOTARO]

Yes! 

There is a party at the graveyards tonight :)

[JAEMIN]

oh

⎛⎝ (• ⱅ •) ⎠⎞

have fun 

[SHOTARO]

[¬º-°]¬

[JAEMIN]

is that supposed to be you ( ㇏ (•̀  ᢍ •́ ) ノ )

[SHOTARO]

Hehehe. Maybe

[¬º-°]¬

[JAEMIN]

cute

[SHOTARO]

Actually, do u want to come [¬º-°]¬

[JAEMIN]

umm…

[SHOTARO] 

Itll be fun ( ㇏ ( ♡ ᢍ ♡ ) ノ )

[JAEMIN]

is that me 

[SHOTARO]

Maybe :)

Will u join?

[JAEMIN]

my brother did mention how graveyard parties are fun…

[SHOTARO]

It is ( ⁀ ᗢ ⁀ )

[JAEMIN]

ill go 

because that emoticon is cute. ( ㇏ (•̀ ᵥᵥ •́) ノ )

[SHOTARO] 

[¬º-°]¬

Jaemin’s brother was right.

Graveyard parties were fun. 

Unfortunately for Jeno, however, the full moon was out and shining brightly. Whenever the full moon was out, were-creatures were strongly discouraged from interacting with other creatures. Jaemin knew how unhinged Jeno could be in his full form, so it was for the best that Jeno decided to sit this party out. 

Well, sucks to be him.

Renjun gave Jaemin a flaky response as to why he couldn't go, and normally Jaemin would call him out but for once, Jaemin let Renjun be.

(Because he wanted to be with Shotaro.)

Jaemin realized how crowded and diverse the party was. A myriad of monsters and creatures all gathered in the graveyards regardless of who they were. In some areas, Jaemin noticed a few vampires in the party socializing with other creatures. Faeries and witches competing with each other at a game of eyeball pong. The anthropodians battling each other at a dance battle. Spirits mingling with zombies to meddle with ghoulish substances. 

Jaemin has been to several parties in his stay in NCT Academy, but only now has he witnessed such an inclusive crowd. 

He was amazed. 

Jaemin stood by Shotaro, both of them watching the dance battle transporting in front of them. He took small sips of the drink in his hand, making sure not to go overboard.

“Are you having fun?”

Jaemin grinned at Shotaro. “Are you kidding? This is great. Vampire parties are either so stuffy or deadly. We never have fun.”

“I’m glad.” Shotaro said, smiling. Suddenly, Jaemin looked over Jaemin's shoulder. Jaemin watched as Shotaro's smile grew and waved his hand. Jaemin turned around to see a mummy walking towards the two of them. 

“Sungchan!”

Jaemin stood awkwardly as Shotaro hugged his friend. 

“Sungchan, this is my roommate Jaemin,” Shotaro gestured towards Jaemin, and Jaemin tried his best to ignore the weird feeling that arose when he was referred to as ‘roommate'. “Jaemin, this is my best friend Sungchan!”

Sungchan nodded at Jaemin, and briefly gave him a lookover. Jaemin felt as if he was being scrutinized, and crossed his arms out of defense. 

“So you’re the bully roommate,” Sungchan said, simultaneously causing Jaemin to drop his jaw and Shotaro to smack Sungchan in the shoulder. Sungchan’s impassive, straight face slowly turned into a coy, cheeky one, and before Jaemin knew it, Sungchan was laughing. “I’m joking! Jeez. I know you guys are _friends_ now.”

Jaemin ignored the shift in Sungchan’s tone when he said the word friend. Instead, Jaemin thought that he saw Shotaro blush, but promptly reminded himself that zombies probably couldn’t blush. Jaemin cleared his throat. “Nice to meet you.”

“Well, I'm gonna head over to the spirits,” Sungchan said pointing a finger to where the spirits and zombies were mingling. “Are you joining?”

Shotaro put a finger on his chin, as if he were pondering. “Hmm…” Shotaro said, and Jaemin couldn’t help but smile at Shotaro’s cuteness.

(What?)

( _Anyway_.)

“No,” Shotaro said, though he said so with a large smile. “Unless… Jaemin, do you want to?”

Jaemin quickly shook his head no. He had some encounters with ghoulish substances, and long story short, he would rather not repeat history in a crowd he didn’t know very well. Sungchan seemed unbothered by Shotaro and Jaemin’s rejection and shrugged. “’Kay, your loss,” Sungchan said. “Stay safe, okay?”

“Bye,” Shotaro said as he waved goodbye to Sungchan. Once Sungchan walked away, Shotaro turned to Jaemin. “Do you want to stay here and socialize or… I think I got something that you’d like to see, actually. What do you say?”

Jaemin was quite touched that Shotaro was considerate enough to ask. While his closest friends knew Jaemin as bubbly and cheeky, Jaemin was not as open with situations and communities that he wasn’t familiar in. “Is it dangerous?”

Shotaro laughed. “No,” Shotaro replied. “But it’s kind of far and secluded. Is that okay?”

Jaemin felt his cheeks flush. He knew Shotaro’s words were innocent, but he inevitably let himself imagine an innuendo that was not appropriate. He cleared his throat. “Lead the way.”

The graveyards were larger than Jaemin expected. Jaemin rarely spent time outside the academy, preferring the comforts within the walls of the institution. He felt a little bit out of place after realizing that maybe, he did not know the academy as much as he thought he did. As he followed Shotaro walking upwards, he felt as if he was entering into a new world, nervous, but excited. 

After a while, the two of them reached the peak of the graveyards. Shotaro told Jaemin that they’ve reached their destination and Jaemin took a moment to observe his surroundings. Just beyond the horizon lay the entire graveyards, to which Jaemin almost had a birds eye view of the party. He took his time looking at the view, from the creatures dancing to a faint beat, others socializing with each other, and even to a group of creatures he noticed were chasing each other.

Suddenly, a feeling of serenity flowed into Jaemin as he breathed the night air. Paired with the luminous glow of the full moon, the view was amazing. He turned to Shotaro and smiled. 

“No one really goes here,” Shotaro said, sitting on a nearby rock. “It’s too much of an effort for zombies. We prefer flat terrain.”

Jaemin, who also opted to sit on the rock next to Shotaro’s, was confused. Why did Shotaro make the extra step to bring Jaemin here, then? But before Jaemin could ask, Shotaro spoke again, as if he heard Jaemin’s question in his mind. 

“I know we’re not really friends,” Shotaro said, and Jaemin wanted to disagree, wanted to say that they were friends. But then he thought – were they? Did Shotaro not see Jaemin as a friend? Did Jaemin see Shotaro as a friend? “But you’re my roommate, and I know… things haven’t been going well with you. I thought that by bringing you here, you can find comfort here.”

Jaemin watched as Shotaro looked up to the sky, fascinated by how his eyes reflected the moon. It made Shotaro’s eyes shine brighter than they already were. 

“I didn’t start here,” Shotaro continued. “I moved here only a year ago, actually. It’s probably why you don’t know me, or you’ve never heard of me.”

“So, you’re a transfer?” Jaemin asked for clarification, and Shotaro nodded. Jaemin hummed thoughtfully. Transfers were not uncommon in NCT Academy, but he never met one until now. 

“I’ve told you that I’m a Type C zombie. Well, I was in a lab before this. Bunch of human scientists… it’s not a pleasant experience. I didn’t have friends, or any knowledge really, about what the world was like,” Shotaro gave Jaemin a slight smile. “I managed to escape. I tried to find zombie enclosures, but all I managed to find were wild zombies. I was walking, and walking, completely unsure what to do next. I had half the thought to return to the humans. Then I met a monster. A plant monster, to be exact. I’ve never one until then, but then again, I’ve never met anyone before. He offered me help, and invited me to be a student in NCT. Now, here I am.”

Jaemin remained silent, listening attentively as Shotaro continued. “I felt like I didn’t belong,” Shotaro confessed quietly. “And I always thought that maybe… Maybe I shouldn’t be here. I was so… new, out of place. Some zombies thought I was weak because the humans got me. Others thought that I wasn’t a capable zombie in general. Eventually, I met Sungchan. He was a first year at the time, and together we figured out the world. And over time, I met other brilliant people, and learned so much. I know I haven’t been in NCT Academy as long as you did, but for the first time I felt like I was at home, that I belonged.

“I know you’re probably thinking, ‘What does this have to do with me?’, and you’re right,” Shotaro shyly looked down on the grass. “But I guess what I’m trying to say is… I know the fear of not belonging. Of standing out. And I just wanted to tell you, things get better, is all. You’ll feel more comfortable in your skin, and you’ll embrace the differences that make you… you.”

Shotaro glanced over at Jaemin, and for a moment, the two of them stared at each other in silence, in comfort, in understanding. After a while, Jaemin looked away and let out a slight chuckle. “That’s the most I’ve heard you talk.”

Shotaro chuckled in response. “Thanks,” Shotaro said, shaking his head amusedly. “I think you should do something.”

Jaemin looked at Shotaro questioningly as Shotaro stood up. Shotaro held out a hand for Jaemin, and Jaemin took it, standing up. Shotaro let go of Jaemin’s hands and urged him to follow him. Within a few steps, the two of them reached the cliff of the peak. Jaemin looked at Shotaro worriedly. 

“If you’re going to tell me to jump…”

Shotaro gasped, looking scandalized that Jaemin would suggest so. “No!” Shotaro exclaimed. “No, no, no. I heard that people come here to destress… by screaming.”

Jaemin raised an eyebrow. “Screaming?”

Shotaro nodded. “I tried it once with Sungchan,” he shared. “It was very liberating.”

Jaemin bit his lip, then gave Shotaro a nod. “Aahhh.”

His roommate scrunched his eyebrows. “…Is that supposed to be a scream?”

Jaemin huffed in response. “I don’t scream,” Jaemin said, to which Shotaro shot a dubious look. “…Fine. I’ll try again.”

“No one can hear you,” Shotaro supplied. “If anyone would, it would be faint. So just… scream. Let it all out.”

Jaemin took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and allowed himself to relax. He screamed. 

He screamed as if life depended on it. The pressure of living up to his family’s legacy, the pressure of finding his vampire classification, the pressure of doing well academically, the pressure of being an esteemed vampire – all of which were concerns that were not built from competition with others, but more so himself. Competition to be the best he could be, which would be the best of all. Jaemin let it all go, finding relief in doing so, as if he was a volcano finally erupting. 

Then suddenly, Jaemin felt the ground shake. Rocks and pebbles were falling off the edge of the cliff. The trees nearby were hustling, as if a strong wind took over. Jaemin looked behind him, and saw Shotaro losing his own balance, trying to hold on to a boulder to keep himself balanced. Jaemin took a quick glance beyond the cliffs, to see the creatures in the party below them momentarily pause, looking confused, trying to figure out what was that strange sensation that temporarily struck everyone.

Soon, the surroundings stabilized, yet Jaemin was taken aback. Shotaro, still holding on to the boulder, looked at Jaemin with wide eyes. 

“Was that supposed to happen?” Jaemin asked. 

Shotaro shook his head no. 

“Are you freaking kidding me?”

Jeno gave Jaemin a cheeky smile. “You owe me after you made me go to that vampire thing.”

Jaemin rubbed his temples. “I thought you’d make me do your homework,” Jaemin complained. “Or clean your room, or _something_. Not pay for a dinner that’s probably going to take me 2 months to earn back.”

“You wouldn’t even know how to do my homework,” Jeno sassed. “And please, it’s not that expensive.”

Jaemin shoved the bill to his brother’s face, to which Jeno quickly swatted Jaemin’s arm away. “This is the most expensive restaurant in the district,” Jaemin pointed out. “You know what you’re doing. 

Jeno gave an innocent shrug, and Jaemin shook his head disapprovingly. Jeno had asked Jaemin to accompany and treat him to a newly opened restaurant in Werewolves District. Jaemin had absolutely no interest in visiting the district, but since he knew he owed his twin a favor after the dinner, Jaemin relented. He supposed that it wouldn’t be that bad – he would spend time with his twin brother, and hopefully try out new foods. 

What he didn’t expect, however, was for the bill to be insanely expensive. 

Jaemin grumbled out complaints as he fished out bills from his wallet. “I really don’t think your experience in that dinner equates to this much.” Jaemin said bitterly, as he placed the bills on the table. He made sure to pay exact. 

Jeno rolled his eyes as he gestured for a waiter to pick up the bill. The twins waited until after the waiter left them before continuing their conversation. “You know I don’t like vampires,” Jeno said. “But because I’m a good brother, I decided to help you anyway. Besides, you need to learn what it was like to be in my shoes.”

Jaemin sighed, but had to admit to himself that he understood where his brother coming from. Growing up, vampires picked on Jeno for not turning out to be a vampire, the same way werewolves picked on Jaemin for not turning out to be a werewolf. The two never allowed that to ruin their sibling bond, though they did agree to place boundaries in their creature identity. “Well, I hope you enjoyed that meal.”

“I did,” Jeno said, and suddenly his disposition was cheery, just as Jaemin always remembered him to be. “I’m planning to take Donghyuck here for our anniversary. I had to test it.”

Jaemin nodded in understanding. Other than his twin and his papa, Donghyuck was probably the only other were-creature that Jaemin liked. Donghyuck was part of the were-creature community, but unlike Jeno, Donghyuck was a werecat. Jaemin knew that werecats had the reputation for being mischievous and cunning, but a much friendlier attitude than werewolves. 

Jeno, Jaemin, and Donghyuck were childhood friends, introduced to each other by their parents. Donghyuck, the son of werewolf Johnny and cat monster Taeil, got along perfectly with the twins, but Jaemin always noticed how Donghyuck and Jeno gravitated towards each other. No one was surprised when they broke the news that they were dating.

“Fifth anniversary, right?” Jaemin asked, and smiled when his twin gave him a prideful smile. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks,” Jeno said sincerely, then his expression shifted into a contemplative one. “How are you holding up?”

Jaemin blinked, not used to Jeno’s question. As close as the twins were, the two of them always relied on their ‘twin-tuition’ to know how the other was doing. It was rare for one of them to explicitly ask. “I’m okay,” Jaemin said, though he wished he could have believed it. “Just going through it.”

“Father still feels really guilty about how he reacted,” Jeno said, and Jaemin nodded, as for the past month he has still been getting coddled by his father. “The whole psionic vampire thing doesn’t matter.”

“But it does,” Jaemin protested weakly. “To me.”

Jeno made a noise of acknowledgement. The two of them fell silent, both of them focused on finishing the remainder of their drinks. 

“Oh, I forgot to mention,” Jeno piped in, piquing Jaemin’s interest. “Did you know that I’m a blood werewolf?”

Jaemin scrunched his eyebrows. “A what?”

“Yeah, I found out last weekend,” Jeno mentioned, ignoring Jaemin’s complaints about how he didn’t tell his twin sooner. “Remember the full moon last week? The one during the graveyard party?”

Jaemin said yes, and Jeno continued. “Well apparently, we found out that blood energizes me more than it does with other were-creatures. We only found out after we went on a little hunting spree. Papa said I’m most likely a blood werewolf – we just didn’t realize because, well, we’ve never gone that overboard with our hunt.”

“I didn’t even know blood werewolves exist.”

“Apparently,” Jeno said. “And they’re rare. I’m thinking it’s because technically, I’m still half-vampire, right?”

“So, you’re saying… That Father’s genes got mixed with your werewolf genes?”

“Yeah,” replied Jeno, and Jaemin leaned on his seat, deep in thought. “Maybe I’m not full werewolf as I thought. So maybe… You’re not full vampire as you thought.”

“What are you trying to say?”

Jeno shrugged. “Maybe it has something to do with your classification,” he explained. “There’s a possibility your identity is werewolf related.”

Jeno’s thoughts sparked a motivation within Jaemin to find out more. To occupy his time, Jaemin buried himself in texts of texts of vampire lore and history, trying to find a lead as to what his identity truly is. After several weeks, Jaemin felt that he had an idea – but he needed to test it. 

When the night sky introduced a full moon, Jaemin quickly went over to the graveyard, to the peak where Shotaro brought him to. He sat on a nearby boulder and waited. 

Soon enough, the creature Jaemin was expecting arrived. 

“Shotaro.” Jaemin breathed out, relieved that Shotaro arrived. He knew Shotaro was busy lately with zombie laboratory workshops, but he still held out hope that Shotaro would make time for him. For some reason, Jaemin couldn’t think of sharing this experience with anyone else but Shotaro. 

Shotaro’s eyes were concerned. “Are you okay?” He asked, approaching Jaemin. “You texted me in the middle of class.”

Jaemin’s eyes widened. “You were in class?” Shotaro nodded. “Oh ghoul, I’m sorry, I didn’t know! You should go back to class.”

Shotaro shook his head. “No, it’s boring. And your message sounded urgent. Is everything alright?”

Jaemin bit his lip before answering. “Do you remember the last time we were here?” Jaemin continued after Shotaro’s confirmation. “Remember that… _thing_ that happened? The part we didn’t really talk about.”

“Do you mean the little… earthquake?”

“I think I know who I am.”

“I’m sorry, I’m not following.”

“My classification,” Jaemin clarified. “My core. I’m going to try to find it tonight.”

Shotaro was briefly rendered speechless. “Oh,” he said simply. “Good luck. What can I do to help?”

“Shotaro?”

“Yes?”

“I just need you to stay with me,” Jaemin breathed out, nervous. “Can you do that?”

Shotaro took Jaemin’s hand, and squeezed it softly. “Yes,” Shotaro replied, his voice equally as airy. “I’ll stay.”

“I should have known.”

Doyoung called an urgent family meeting after Jaemin relayed his experiences in the family chat. The four of them were now situated in Doyoung and Jaehyun’s chambers, and Jaemin tried to remember when was the last time he visited. 

“I really should have known.” Doyoung repeated, and Jaehyun shook his head disapprovingly. 

“We wouldn’t have known,” Jaehyun said to Doyoung, rubbing Doyoung’s arms. “We didn’t know that Jeno was a blood werewolf.”

“Yes, but…” Doyoung paused. “A lunar vampire. It all makes sense! Jaehyun, do you remember how sensitive Jaemin would be whenever there was a full moon out? Or how Jeno seemed to have a stronger affinity to blood than normal werecreatures would?”

Jaemin scrunched his eyebrows. “Did we really?” Jaemin whispered to his twin, who gave an equally clueless expression.

“How would I know?” Jeno whispered back. 

Doyoung faced his children and heaved a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry,” Doyoung said solemnly. “I should have known. The signs were so obvious since you were young.”

“It’s not your fault, Father,” Jeno said encouragingly. “No one knew.”

Doyoung tutted. “This whole time, I didn’t think that the two of you would represent both me and Papa.”

“It’s rare,” Jaehyun began. “What you two have, who you two are… It’s extremely rare.”

“I noticed,” Jaemin commented. “There wasn’t much lore on lunar vampires.”

Jeno agreed. “Same with blood werewolves.”

“The two of you are extremely special,” Jaehyun said proudly. “So special, and so gifted.”

“We are so proud of you,” Doyoung added. “I’m so sorry we didn’t realize earlier. Especially to you, Jaemin, I’m sorry that I’ve pressured you about being a psionic vampire.”

“Father, it’s okay,” Jaemin replied softly. “I’m just… I’m just happy I know now.”

Jaemin couldn’t recall a moment where his father looked more proud than he did now. “We love you so much,” Doyoung said. “And we will help you, with every step of the way, okay? This is history. The two of you, you are history.”

Doyoung reached out to the twins for a hug, and shortly after, Jaehyun joined in too. The four of them were wrapped in a tenderly familial embrace, radiating love and comfort off of each other.

“Yeah,” Jaemin whispered. “We are.”

On one particularly serene night, Jaemin and Shotaro decided to visit the astronomy tower. The two of them were seated on a bench located in the mezzanine, looking upwards towards the sky. It was silent between them – but comfortable. Jaemin was proud that he came up with the decision to sneak into the tower, as it allowed him to explore more of the academy, and to an extent, the world. 

“I remember when I looked at stars for the first time,” Jaemin looked away from the sky and watched as Shotaro gazed at the skies intensely. “I was programmed to know about stars, back when I was with the humans. I knew about it but… just seeing in real life was different. Ethereal.”

Shotaro took his eyes off of the sky and gave Jaemin a smile. Jaemin smiled back. 

“Do you ever feel angry?” Jaemin asked, and continued when Shotaro cocked his head in confusion. “About what happened to you. The humans.”

Shotaro gently shook his head no. “It’s in the past,” Shotaro replied. “See, I know as monsters we’re not supposed to like humans. But I don’t think it’s that simple – just because I had bad experiences with humans doesn’t mean that every human is bad. The same way… not all zombies are uncivilized. Or, not all vampires are snooty, evil creatures.”

“If it were me,” Jaemin began. “I would hunt the humans down and kill them.”

Shotaro chuckled. “I think _that’s_ the normal response,” he commented. “I always think I’m too friendly for a zombie.”

“That’s not a bad thing.”

“I suppose.”

“I’m still processing,” Jaemin said, after a short moment of quiet between the two. “About the lunar vampire thing. I mean it’s not verified yet or whatever… But it makes sense. And to be honest with you, it’s a bit surreal just knowing that you’re not who you thought you were the entire time.”

“Hey,” Shotaro said softly. “You may not be a psionic vampire, but you are more special. You’re defining vampire history as is. And to a bigger extent, the monster-verse too.”

Jaemin shook his head, slightly embarrassed by Shotaro’s words. “It’s not that special.”

“Yes, it is!” Shotaro tried. “I took the time to study more about vampires. Jaemin, you have self-healing abilities. Plus, you have a special relationship with the moon – just think of how powerful you were when you got in touch with the moon. You have the ability to control your environment, all thanks to the moon. That’s pretty special.”

Jaemin was taken aback. “You took time to research about me?”

Shotaro widened his eyes, then quickly looked away. “I was curious,” he defended. “I wanted to help.”

Jaemin laughed, and nudged Shotaro’s shoulder. “If it makes you feel better,” Jaemin started. “I did research on zombies too. And the human experiments thing.”

It’s true. While Jaemin had to admit that he initially had absolutely no interest in his roommate or zombies in general, Jaemin felt the need and the desire to get closer to his roommate. Through studying about zombies, Jaemin felt closer and closer to Shotaro. 

“You did?” Shotaro said, his tone happy. “Well, what’s the most interesting fact you found about zombies?”

“I don’t know about interesting…” Jaemin answered. “But I think about it a lot. You guys hate doors.”

Shotaro chuckled, as if he couldn’t believe what Jaemin was saying. “What?”

“Don’t you notice?” Jaemin asked. “All of your classes are in open space. And you, especially you, you never close our doors properly. Even until now.”

“…Really?”

“It used to anger me earlier in the year, but I got used to it,” Jaemin confessed with a smile. “What about vampires? What’s an interesting fact you learned?”

“Hmm…” Shotaro paused to think. “Mervampires.”

Jaemin had to admit, that was pretty interesting. Hybrids of mermaids and vampires were not often witnessed, but Jaemin has read countless of tales of their mystical powers. “They are interesting,” Jaemin agreed. “I used to dream of being a mervampire when I was a kid.”

“Didn’t we all wish to be mermaids at some point?” Shotaro pointed out. “They’re beautiful creatures.”

Jaemin looked at Shotaro, and said, “They really are.”

(Jaemin was secretly unsure if he was referring to mermaids as well.)

Time passed, and the two found themselves wrapped in the early rays of sunrise. “We need to head back,” Jaemin said, unwilling to stay any longer and wait for the sun to come out. “Let’s go to sleep.”

Something shifted in Jaemin and Shotaro’s relationship. From being roommates who barely interacted with one another, Jaemin found himself in the company of Shotaro more often lately. The two of them often ate dinner together, talking to each other about everything, anything. Sometimes, the two of them would stay silent – and Jaemin didn’t mind. In fact, Jaemin liked it.

Jaemin and Shotaro were seated across from each other, silently enjoying their dinner. Jaemin basked in the peace between them, trying to savor the moment of blissful peace for there were only a few weeks left till their final examinations. 

Suddenly, Jaemin felt heat near him.

It was Renjun, whose hair was aflame. Jaemin saw Shotaro slightly move away. Before Jaemin could ask what was wrong, Renjun spoke in distress. 

“I kissed him.”

Jaemin and Shotaro gave each other a confused look. “Kissed… who?”

Renjun’s head turned to fire, and Jaemin quickly scooted away. Jaemin never dealt with extreme heat very well. “My roommate, Jaemin. I kissed him, oh my ghoul, I kissed him. I don’t even know why I did it, how it even happened, it just did, we were just talking and then suddenly—”

Renjun’s entire body turned into fire. At that point, both Shotaro and Jaemin stood up, quickly moving away from the distressed fire elemental. 

“Hey, Renjun, let’s try to calm down, okay?” Jaemin said slowly, careful with his words. He took a quick glance at Shotaro, who looked extremely concerned. “I can’t handle the heat well, remember?”

“Me neither,” Shotaro confessed quietly. “I’m not made to withstand fire.”

Jaemin tried again. “Renjun?”

Renjun closed his eyes, and started breathing. Jaemin saw Renjun’s fire corporeal form slowly fade, then finally return to normal. “I’m sorry,” Renjun said sullenly. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Jaemin said, as both he and Shotaro returned to his seats. Renjun still seemed miserable. “Hey, Renjun, it’s okay. We’re here.”

“He’s human,” Renjun said. “He’s human, I—I can’t be with a _human_.”

“Not all humans are bad.” Shotaro said, and Jaemin remembered how Shotaro was never interested in partaking in human hate. 

“It’s not about him being human,” Renjun said. “It’s about me being a fire elemental.”

Jaemin understood. Elementals were considered the natural foundations of the monster-verse – to maintain order, elementals never engaged with anyone outside their element. The thought of elementals unionizing with different elementals was unspeakable. But no one has ever thought about elementals unionizing with other creatures – let alone _humans_. 

“I’m going to hurt him,” Renjun said dejectedly. “I’m supposed to protect him, but I’m going to hurt him.”

_ Protect _ ? Jaemin decided not to comment. 

“Renjun, you’d never hurt anyone,” Jaemin said. “Not even if you tried. I know you always act tough, but let’s be real. You’re just a bark of a Cerberus than a bite.”

“Hey.” Renjun protested, but his tone grew lighter. 

“It’ll be fine, okay?” Jaemin continued. “You’re not alone.”

Renjun looked at Jaemin, then at Shotaro, then back to Jaemin. Sighing, Renjun slowly nodded. Jaemin noticed that Renjun’s shoulders relaxed, as if tension left his body. The three of them fell into silence, and Jaemin and Shotaro continued eating their meal. 

Suddenly, a grumble was heard. It was from Renjun. “I’m hungry.” 

Jaemin rolled his eyes, though he was amused at his friend’s antics. “Then go eat, dummy.”

Weeks turned to days, then days formed into hours, and suddenly Jaemin found himself minutes before his final examination. The final examination was designed to be similar to the midterms, but more comprehensive and complex. Additionally, instead of performing the VATs individually with the professors, all students were required to witness each other’s performance. 

Jaemin watched as his vampire peers received official confirmation of their classifications: Olivia, a rage vampire. Hyunjin, a sex vampire. Felix, neuronal. Yeji, mystic. Growing up, Jaemin did not bother learning much about other classifications, thinking that the psionic classification was the ultimate one. But after his own experiences, and witnessing his peers radiate their energy through the halls, Jaemin slowly realized the beauty of each classifications. Even those who received a regular classification emanated an energy that was unique to each individual. Jaemin never really realized how wonderful the vampire community was. He felt proud. 

Jaemin’s turn came, and he stepped on to the platform, ready to show his capabilities. As practice, Jaemin focused on tapping into his core, despite the status of the moon. As such, Jaemin was confident that he would be able perform his best, despite the new moon. 

Jaemin took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. As he felt himself levitate off the ground, Jaemin remembered the journey of self-discovery in this semester. He relived the moments where he was subjected to change, where he was unwilling to bend to new customs and stray from tradition. He took pride in the times he allowed himself to be vulnerable, to accept change. 

For some reason, Jaemin thought of Shotaro. 

The meditation provided Jaemin the most energy he has ever experienced in his life. As he completed his examination, Jaemin felt a newfound invigoration within himself that he was proud to cultivate. The professors looked at Jaemin in awe, and Jaemin noticed his father watching him with a proud smile. Jaemin smiled back. 

“That was wonderful, Jaemin,” Professor Irene spoke. “It is as shown – you are a lunar vampire. Congratulations.”

Jaemin smiled as his peers cheered him on, commenting on how special and lucky Jaemin was. 

The official year-end rankings came a few hours later. 

Jaemin was second. 

For some reason, Jaemin did not feel disappointed. In fact, Jaemin felt accomplished, and determined. This was only the beginning, after all.

As per tradition in NCT Academy, at the end of every semester was a celebratory ball. The Winter Ball was approaching, and students and professors alike were excited for the culmination activity of the year. The night before the ball, Jaemin asked Shotaro what his plans for the ball were. 

“I think I’m going with Sungchan,” Shotaro said. “It’s not like I can find a date.”

Before Jaemin could even think, he spoke. “No,” Jaemin said resolutely. “You’ll go with me.” 

Shotaro flushed at Jaemin’s directness, but smiled, nonetheless. “Okay.”

To both of their surprise, Renjun ended up going to the ball with Lucas, a loud and rambunctious sasquatch hominid. 

“He wasn’t going to go anyway.” Renjun said when the pair approached him, though neither Shotaro or Jaemin mentioned anything related to the human roommate. 

On the other hand, to absolutely nobody’s surprise, Jeno and Donghyuck went together, and were sickeningly affectionate than they were usually were, provided that their anniversary was just a few days before the ball. Jaemin smiled watching at his twin brother. He would never admit it to Jeno, but it made Jaemin so happy to see his twin happy. 

Jaemin observed his environment, and noticed a few of his friends as well. Mark, just as he did for the vampire dinner, went with Mina. His vampire peers brought different dates – some with vampires, others not. The spirit trio, unlikely to be separated regardless, went together and did not hesitate in causing a ruckus, leading to some of the professors to chase them around the venue. Sungchan ended up attending the ball with Chenle, and to Jaemin’s surprise, Sungchan looked genuinely interested in whatever Chenle had to say. 

Suddenly, Jaemin’s train of thought was interrupted by Shotaro leaning closer to him. Shotaro smelled good. He smelled earthly, and it reminded the time of when Jaemin first found his lunar core. “Do you want to get out of here?” Shotaro asked in a low voice. “I know a place.”

Jaemin raised an eyebrow. “What kind of place?”

Shotaro gave Jaemin a knowing smile and said, “Follow me.” Shotaro took Jaemin’s hand and walked out of the venue, reminding Jaemin of their first walk together to the graveyard peaks. But unlike last time, Shotaro never let go of Jaemin’s hand. And Jaemin had no intention of letting go. 

Finally, the two of them arrived in the botanical gardens of the academy. Jaemin rarely visited this portion of the institution – the last time he remembered was when he had general education subjects related to nature. Back then, Jaemin had no interest. Now, Jaemin felt himself entranced by the beauty of the plants, the flowers, everything around him. 

Jaemin looked at Shotaro, and Shotaro looked back. There was an unspoken energy between them, something that longed to be addressed. Strangers before, and now something indeterminate. At the corner, Jaemin noticed a shed. Jaemin took Shotaro’s hand and entered the shed together. As Jaemin walked deeper into the shed, he turned to Shotaro and said:

“Close the door behind you. Properly.”

Shotaro gave a coy smile. “Certainly.”

The start of the school year never failed to give Taeyong a multitude of emotions – from excitement to nervousness, being the headmaster of NCT Academy was never easy, but it was always a challenge he was willing to take. 

This year however, was different. For this year, Taeyong would not start the year alone, but with someone else: his son. 

Granted, Taeyong only met his son a few months ago, but he felt an unexplainable pull to the boy that screamed to him – this boy is _family_. And Taeyong was determined to protect the boy, no matter the cost. 

As a result, Taeyong enrolled his son in NCT Academy, despite knowing the risks and dangers for his son. He thought that having his son close to him, near him, would be better for the both of them. 

But of course, Taeyong could not stay with his son at all times. Thus, Taeyong took the initiative to reach out to his closest peers among the professors, to decide who would stay with his son, and would inevitably protect him. 

“It can’t be our sons,” Doyoung said to Taeyong, and Taeyong watched as Jaehyun nodded in agreement. “It’s too dangerous.”

“Nor ours,” Taeil stepped in. “Johnny and I have agreed with Jaehyun to keep our son with his.”

Taeyong sighed, but he understood. He looked at the grim reaper, Kun, the vice-headmaster of the school. To Taeyong’s dismay, Kun shook his head no. 

“Chenle, Xiaojun, Hendery, and Lucas are not due for a roommate change yet,” Kun explained. “And Yangyang is too unbalanced, it’s too dangerous. I’m sorry, Taeyong.”

“It’s fine,” Taeyong said softly, then turned to another of his peers. “Yuta?”

Yuta gave Taeyong a sullen look. “Shotaro spent his entire life with those evil hu—”

“– My son is not the same.” Taeyong interrupted, and Yuta nodded tersely. 

“My answer is no.” 

Taeyong sighed, then turned to another. “Jungwoo?”

“Sungchan and Mark are not due for a roommate change either.” Jungwoo said weakly. 

“We can make an exception,” Taeyong tried, but Jungwoo shook his head no. 

And for his final resort, Taeyong turned to Ten and Winwin, who already had worried expressions on their faces. Winwin spoke. “We will let Renjun stay with your son,” everyone in room immediately looked at Winwin, scandalized by what he said. “On one condition.”

“Anything.” Taeyong responded earnestly.

Winwin looked at his husband, and urged him to continue. Ten cleared his throat. “Tell us, why are you doing this? You of all people know we don’t accept… humans in the society. We have worked long and hard to maintain the peace and order of the monster-verse, and here you are, letting a human in one of many’s safe spaces. Tell us, why?”

Taeyong fell silent, as he felt everyone’s eyes on him. After a moment, Taeyong sighed and spoke. 

“He’s not human,” Taeyong said, and continued even with the frenzies of questions and exclamations thrown at him. “He looks like a human, talks like a human, acts like a human, but he’s not.”

“Then, what is he?” Doyoung asked.

“I don’t know,” Taeyong said honestly. “All I know is that he’s not human, and that he is in danger.”

**Author's Note:**

> I googled vampire and zombie kaomoji for this fic. [¬º-°]¬
> 
> Any guesses who Renjun's roommate is?
> 
> [Bug me on Twitter](http://twitter.com/minapearls/)


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